Just Haruhi
by oOoIZZYoOo
Summary: Second Part of Just Hikaru First Act Finished Haruhi and Hikaru are finally ready to face the music hand in hand but without her father and a phycho fiance chasing after her life, how on Earth will these two be able to get away and let their love grow!
1. The Start of Something New

The rain poured down hard that day. The girl was nearly inaudible over the harsh pounding of the droplets of rain against the metal roofs that sheltered the group of men and women. Many blended in perfectly with the dreary scenery, with their thick black dresses and suits. There was a silence among the strangers as three children stood huddled together. Had it been any other location, their laughter would have rang out sweet and swift with the echo filled train station, allowing their voices to boom. But today, everyone in the world just seemed bland.

The strangers had no emotions on their faces, stone cold and numb they had seen too much in the world to smile so happily like the children beside them did. Women looked away in embarrassment as one reached out and poked one of the boys, making them squirm and cry tears of laughter.. Not that it mattered; the rain that poured down so heavily hid any tears on his face, and for that he was grateful.

Even the youngest of the three, who would have blushed and hidden herself at the slightest annoyance, was laughing and playing among the two, almost mistaken for just a normal girl. The other boy stood beside her, his light hearted laughter making her giggle as well as he patted her head, his only source of physical contact at the moment.

"Hikaru be careful!" Kaoru shouted suddenly as he stopped petting Haruhi and ran out with his Brother in the rain. Haruhi smiled, her baby brown eyes watching the two as they splashed each other with what water they caught in their hands. Haruhi laughed as well and suddenly burst out through the crowd and into the rain. Hikaru and Kaoru blinked for a few moments as she ran toward them, but they both seemed to glow with happiness as she laughed and went in-between them. Almost wondering why she had run out to see them they stood still for a few moments before she happily splashed the two of them.

Hikaru blinked before growling playfully under his breath and watching as Haruhi and Kaoru ran off in a small chase to see who would splash one another first. Hikaru smiled as he saw how radiant his brothers face was when he laughed.

He and Kaoru were always together; that was a basic foundation that he had revolved his entire life upon. They came into the world together. They wore the same types of clothes and talked the same way. They perfected their walking and based all of their spirits on being exactly symmetrical. If Hikaru felt happiness, then Kaoru felt the same happiness. If Kaoru felt pain, then Hikaru felt the same pain. So why did this world decide that Kaoru had to fall in love with the girl he would die for? Why had this world, that had so willingly brought them up together, not let them stay in such a willingly happy place as well?

"…Why her…" Hikaru whispered. His voice wasn't more than a failed attempt at speech however. The rain hid his voice very well, and even if he had been in a silent hall, he would have not been able to talk over a whisper on such a subject. Hikaru closed his eyes sadly before feeling a shockingly cold splash on his face. He blinked his eyes open only to stare at a very happy and carefree Haruhi in front of him, her hands cupped and empty of water.

But on the other hand, it was good that it was raining today. If the sky had dared to show its bright sun on the day of his brother's burial, he might have lost it. Hikaru flinched as he looked down to see his hand shaking violently before him. He brought it up to his lips and bit down on his flesh to calm his nerves. This did not seem to help, however, as tears glided onto them.

"Oh you're going down" Hikaru whispered as he shook his head, allowing small droplets to fall on her face. She laughed and took off running as he chased after her.

They were 'the twins' and they had been 'the twins' all of Hikaru's life. What would people call them if they decided to be different? He didn't want to be just 'Hikaru'. There was now way that he could live being, just 'Hikaru'. But then again…what was living unless it was trying right? Hikaru laughed and grabbed onto Haruhi's stomach, picking her up as Kaoru raced over chuckling while he tickled at her neck.

"Ah that reminds me Haruhi! Hikaru and I are going on a boring business trip with mom in a few days, you wanna come? It'll be a whole lot more fun with you there!" Kaoru said bravely. Hikaru blushed and bit his lip to keep from saying anything, not wanting to pressure her into the trip nor push her away from it.

"Yea that sound's fun! I'll just have to ask my dad" Haruhi laughed out. Hikaru looked at the girl, holding her still to him as she laughed. She had laughed a lot lately, a little too much actually.

A lot had happened in the past year to Hikaru, he had been shot for Haruhi, fallen into a coma, had a wonderful dream about his future with the brown eyed girl, and overall realized how much he was head over heels in love with her. And as the girl squirmed in his arms giggling he dug his face into her back not even feeling the rain against his head. The boy tightened his grip on her as he flinched, knowing he couldn't say the words he so heavily felt. So, silencing himself once more, he mouthed the words 'I love you' into her shirt.

**Just Haruhi: Growing Pains**

Authors Note:

Hi everyone, it's good to see you all again. I'm sorry to say that due to personal reasons I won't be able to update Everyone Has A Story any longer. I'll be deleting it in a few days, but I just wanted to give everyone a head's up before I do. Besides that my computer has been broken down so I couldn't use Microsoft Word any longer. However for my birthday I got a laptop (Oh-em-gee- WOOT!) so it's a lot easier for me to type. Like I said, I'm very sorry for not updating but hopefully not that everything's been sorted out things will get better. I'm still not feeling very well and so my writing quality may suffer and I know that this chapter isn't nearly as long as it should be… again I apologize for the inconvenience. If anyone wants to talk or ask questions, put in further depth reviews or tips, or even just hand over ideas you all know my email is the way everyone, I read that the twins are Gemini's, meaning that their birthdays are in the summer months but I do not know the exact dates and I don't think that they have been released, so if anyone has them can you please tell me?

Oh as for new readers, please follow my authors link to "Just Hikaru" and read that story before this one! Thank you!

Chapter One: The Rules of Engagement

"Mr. Fujioka I'm glad you could make it" A smooth and calm voice whispered as the cross-dressing man stepped into dark room surrounded by intimidating looking rich men. The first that sat at the head of the table, and the and the one that had greeted them, had thick blonde hair that seemed to sprout off of his head even though gel had slicked it to his scalp. His bright violet eyes carried a hint of kindness in them as he gave a small sophisticated smile toward the man. On the right of him was a man of the same posture, his hair was dark black and fell across his face, his cold gray eyes shining at the transvestite. To the left was another handsome gentleman, though he had a happy smile on his face, his bright orange hair complimenting his baby blue eyes. Had it been any other occasion Ryoji would have been swooned off his feet.

"…Yes…I don't mean to seem rude men, but I do have work to attend to as I'm sure you men do too." He whispered as he sat down, his long red hair falling across his shoulders delicately as he looked up once more at all of them. His make up had been washed off his face, his hair tied into a thin ponytail, his dress replaced by his best suit. His usually happy brown eyes glared seriously at all of them as he folded his arms.

"Haha! Of course Mr. Fujioka, well I suppose you know what this is all about then?" The golden haired man asked. Ryoji let out a heavy sigh as he glared at them all again. He had sent Haruhi off with the two orange headed boys for the day so that she wouldn't have to hear this conversation, and it would seem that all of the fathers had done the same. The blue eyes man laughed and tossed his water a bit, making it splash in his glass as he shook his head.

"Come on you guys, stop acting so serious about this." He slurred out making Ryoji lift an eyebrow at the real contents of his cup. At this statement the black haired man sent daggers in his direction. His perfectly molded hair even stood on end as he slammed his large hand down on the table.

"How dare you say that this isn't a serious matter? That's just offensive to every father in this room Mr. Hitachiin." He harshly whispered. The blonde sighed and let out a bit of a nervous laugh as he shook his head and spread out his arms to set the one beside him down and to quiet the one on his left.

"Mr. Ohtori I expect you to keep your dignity in this meeting, no matter the reason. You are both correct; however this isn't a reason to fight. So Mr. Fujioka, what is your answer to our offers?" The man whispered. Ryoji leaned back in his chair, his bright brown eyes staring at the ceiling for a few minutes before cracking his neck and sitting up straight.

"I really don't think that there is much to talk about, my daughter is not a piece of meat that can be bought off with the highest bidder and I refuse to talk behind her back and treat her like one." Ryoji answered as he slowly started to stand, finding that this conversation was over. However the men all stiffened as the blonde stood up hesitantly and held out a hand, laughing a bit.

"We would never treat Haruhi like that sir, that's not out intention. We are just trying to look out for our sons." He said kindly. Ryoji rolled his eyes before turning his back to the men and walking to the door. He put his hands in his pockets and sighed, letting his head fall a bit before shaking his hair out of its ponytail.

"My baby Haruhi will marry who she chooses, I will not limit her to one of your sons. Good day." Ryoji answered as he started toward the door once more. The blonde sighed and sat back down just as the black haired man stood angrily.

"Mr. Fujioka, you might not realize what a wonderful offer this is for your daughter. Commoner girls are rarely accepted into a rich family like your daughter is." He stated, the words rolling off of his tongue cruelly as Ryoji's shoulder twitched before the man slowly turned to face them all again. The orange headed man laughed and hid under the table as the blonde rubbed his temple annoyingly. A small dark chuckle escaped Ryoji as he tilted his head at the man.

"and you don't know how wonderful and rare it is that I don't punch you right now…" He said through gritted teeth as he grabbed onto the double door's handles and threw them open before storming out. The butlers standing near the door gently closed them as Hikaru and Kaoru's father slipped out from under the table, laughing his head off. The man laughed and pointed before shaking his head and holding his stomach before grabbing his coat.

"Ah man that was great. Anyways boys I'll see seeing you, I got a plane to catch!" The man said happily as he grabbed his water bottle and headed for the door as well. The blonde suddenly looked up in surprise as he stopped rubbing his head and let his hand fall a bit.

"Wait, aren't your boy's birthdays coming up?" He asked tilting his head a bit, his bright eyes blinking innocently. The black haired man gave a scoff as he too grabbed his things, since there was nothing to talk about there was little reason to be here.

"Please, the boys are fourteen now; they don't need me to be there to celebrate things like Holidays." The man said rolling his eyes as he let his slacks drift against the floor. He looked thin, his face didn't have much on it and his bright blue eyes seemed to be clouded.

"…Actually their sixteen…" The blonde whispered. The other two shrugged it off and walked out of the room without much thought. The blonde sighed before closing the book that he had been hiding throughout the meeting. He slowly slipped a picture out of it, his eyes softening at the bright and happy smile of the woman he had once loved. Raising Tamaki as a scarred teen who smiled too much and played dumb too easily wasn't easy, but he would try, all for her sake.

He slowly reached in his pocket and pulled out his phone before he pressed onto the third dial, holding it down as the phone suddenly started to ring. The man placed it to his ears before hearing a happy and somewhat confused voice answer on the other end. Tamaki's father smiled before he started toward the door, photo in hand.

"Hey Son, are you busy today?"

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Ryoji sighed as he opened the door to his tiny apartment. He threw his shoes in the corner and took off his suit to reveal the pink fluffy shirt underneath. He slowly looked up and noticed movement in the house. Placing his frown aside, sparkles appeared around him as he saw the lovely face of his daughter. He giggled and threw his arms around her happily.

"Haruhi I'm home!" He chimed out happily. Haruhi blinked as he hugged her, her arms slowly relaxed as she wrapped them around his back. How long had it been since he held her like this? She had almost forgotten what it felt like; her father had been working very hard lately to make sure that she had enough money for the ever pressing needs of school and daily life. Haruhi looked down at the floor sadly as she slowly passed her father the mail through the hug.

"…these came in today." Haruhi whispered as she watched him flip through the bills and overdue notices. Haruhi's heart sank as she saw the bright red ink on all of the letters. Ryoji seemed to go numb as he threw the letters onto the small coffee table and headed toward his room. Haruhi quickly went into action, grabbing her report card from out of the mail as well as her final results.

"Look dad!" Haruhi said happily pressing her papers against his back to get his attention. Ryoji looked back with a forced smile as he nodded, not even glancing at the papers.

"Good job Honey, I'm a little sleepy so I'm gonna take a nap before I go to work ok? Is there enough in the fridge for dinner?" He asked softly. Haruhi slowly nodded before bringing her papers back and looking down at the floor. Ryoji laughed and rubbed her on the top of the head before pulling her into one last hug. This time Haruhi merely let her head fall against his chest as she closed her eyes, whispering something under her breath.

"…I'll pay for my medical bill Dad…just gimmee a little time to get the money." Haruhi whispered. Her father gave a strained laugh and rubbed her back before pulling back, still holding onto her.

"Don't you worry about that ok Haruhi? You just get better and keep smiling alright." He smiled and nodded before walking in and closing the door to his room. Haruhi stared at his door for a bit before sitting down on the couch, defeated. It hurt her that her father smiled so often, but what hurt more was the fact that she could see his eye's watering when he did it. Haruhi sighed and laid down, letting her hair fall from it's weak ponytail as she picked up her home phone and dialed.

"Hey Haruhi! Surprise to see you calling." A joyous voice answered. Haruhi smiled a bit and let herself relax into the couch, her body fitting perfectly into the curves of the cushions.

"Oh hey Hikaru, I could have sworn I called Kaoru's phone, uh look, Dad was busy and I couldn't ask him about the trip, is there any way that I can delay that answer for another day?" Haruhi asked softly, her eyes half closing as she felt her voice crack a bit near the end of the sentence. Even though her mouth was talking so calmly her heart really hurt. Hikaru and Kaoru didn't seem to have much trouble paying for the medical bills due to the accident, but for her father it was a huge hit on an already bleeding wound.

"Ha, of course Haruhi, it's not like this is a school field trip or anything." Hikaru answered happily; glad she was even considering it. The boy paused on the phone line for a few seconds before hesitantly asking-

"Hey Haruhi is everything ok? You sound upset." Hikaru whispered as he listened for her reply. Haruhi eyed the phone with a bit of insecurity before placing it back to her ear. How on Earth had he learned when she was really upset, over the phone of all things. Then again that had been one of the things that she had noticed Hikaru had changed in. He seemed to be so carefree and trustworthy of her now, and even his immature status had lowered dramatically. Come to think of it, his dramatic change had happened right after he woke up from his wound. Had the accident really changed him that much?

"Just thinking." Haruhi answered as she dropped an arm over her eyes, taking in a deep breath. His voice was so calm, smooth, beautiful…

Haruhi raised a brow at her own thoughts, beautiful, what the hell was that? The girl shook her head quickly as if cold water had just been dropped on her head. She quickly regained what posture she had before turning her attention back to the phone. Haruhi could almost imagine the sweet smile of his through the phone as he laughed for her.

"Don't think to much Haruhi, you're head might spontaneously combust." He answered happily. Haruhi slowly nodded, hiding her smile from herself. The girl giggled and lifted her spine up a little to pop her back.

"Oh yea I forgot about that. I'll be careful." Haruhi laughed out. Hikaru laughed a bit as well before pausing and letting out a small content sigh.

"Good, I don't know what I would do if something happened to you" Hikaru whispered into the phone. Haruhi's eyes opened wide as she felt the pulse of her heart shake her wrist and body. The girl placed her hand on her chest as she tried to keep breathing up to normal.

"Ah…ye-yea….uh! Hikaru I gotta go, say hello to Kaoru for me." Haruhi whispered quickly as she hung up, her heart beating a thousand miles per minute. She had only felt like this a few times, and that was when Hikaru had held her in that church during the storm, when she had found out that Tamaki was engaged, and though she hated to admit it, she had felt the same when Kyouya took her hand and threw her onto the bed.

Haruhi looked around quickly to make sure that no one could hear her thoughts as she blushed and threw the pillow over her face to hide her tomato like skin. She was at the age where hormones kicked in, it was simply chemical reactions. Haruhi pouted a bit before getting up and off of the couch.

"I always did hate chemistry." Haruhi whispered as she sighed and sat in front of her mother's picture. She got on her knees and placed her head on the desk before sighing heavily, wondering what type of life she would be living if the woman was still alive. Haruhi smiled, her eyes closing as she felt sleep start to take over her.

"_Mama-mama-mama-mama!" Haruhi giggled and ran into her mothers legs, falling to the floor with a soft bang. Her mother blinked, a bit shocked as she reached down and grabbed the girl off of the floor and into her arms as she nuzzled her head against Haruhi's hair. Haruhi smiled happily, her big eyes closing as her mouth opened in a happy smile. Her mom kissed her forehead quickly before putting the girl back down offering her, her hand. Haruhi took the long fingers, slipping her small palm into her mothers finger as she skipped along with her. _

"_You want to help me make dinner Haruhi?" Her mother asked, her face covered with a black shadow. Haruhi nodded quickly before running into the kitchen and flipping through the recipe boxes. She pulled out her favorite, chocolate cake! Haruhi giggled and handed her mother the card. Her mom eyed it for a second before laughing herself and getting down on her knees._

"_Haruhi this doesn't look like dinner." She answered with a large smile. The little girl laughed again and shook her head quickly. Her mom smirked before standing up, placing her hands on her hips. _

"_Then it shall be cooked!" She said happily as she picked Haruhi up, placing her on the counter as she laughed. Haruhi smiled at her innocently as her mother started to skillfully mix the ingredients together. The woman slowly passed Haruhi the large bag of sugar, allowing her to pour it in. Haruhi stood up on the counter and slowly started to pour in the sugar with the utmost care. Suddenly a huge sprout flowed from the bag and into the bowl, making Haruhi flinch as she saw how much she had poured in on accident. She quickly lifted the bag, staring at the ruined batch with teary and frightened eyes._

"…_it's ruined." Her mother had made such a great batch and she had ruined it! Haruhi whispered as she started to sniff, her eyes watering as tears slowly flowed down. She wiped at her eyes quickly, remembering that her daddy had told her that big girls didn't cry. Her mother hesitated on what to say before smiling and leaning down to Haruhi, placing her comfortingly in her arms again. Haruhi gave a small hiccup and started to cry as her mother kissed her cheek._

"_Hehe…we'll just make this daddy's batch ok?" She asked happily. Haruhi looked up with pathetic eyes before her mother gave her a warm smile, making her heart lift. Haruhi giggled and nodded before watching as her mom continued to stir the not so perfect batch of chocolate batter. _

"_See it's ok Haruhi, just don't cry ok?" Her mother whispered nervously as she patted her child's head and ran a hand through her hair._

"Haruhi? Haruhi?" Haruhi slowly opened her eyes as her father poked her back to wake her up. Haruhi turned quickly as she saw her father's concerned gaze reflected onto her. Haruhi smiled happily, her pale skin becoming more lively as she stood and brushed her hair out of her face.

"Did you have a nice nap dad?" She asked happily. Her father blinked for a few moments before looking down at the ground seeing that she didn't want to talk about whatever it was that was on her mind. He looked up at her again and smiled, nodding.

"I had a lovely nap. Thanks honey." Ryoji whispered as he watched his daughter laugh and nod. She said something about going on a trip with the Hitachiin Brothers but he couldn't hear her as other thoughts ran through his head. He nodded making her seem to brighten with enjoyment as she laughed and hugged him happily. The man watched as she walked off to her room but it was only then that he registered what he had just said yes too.

"Wait Haruhi I wasn't paying attention!" He called out fake tears strolling down his cheeks as he whimpered and watched her happily pack for her two week trip with her classmates.


	2. The Thoughts of A Commoner

Authors Note:

Hey everyone it's me Izzy!

Ah I am so sorry this is so late. I got to page five and I just got so stuck, I knew what I wanted to write but it wasn't flowing like I wanted it too. So here is a little fluff to make up to you all.

There are two dream scenes, sorry, but I just really like to type them because Haruhi can't really just say what she's seeing like Hikaru can. Anyways, the second one is based off a true story, it's kind of a funny story actually, one of my best friends and I started our relationship because he threw a rock and missed XD

Ah and yea, I'll be putting a lot of my stupid theories into this story because Haruhi is JUST THAT FUN TO MESS WITH! HEHE!

I feel a lot better than I did and so all of your kind words is like music to my ears! It did take a bit and I had to re-write this chapter around three-hundred times but I'm very glad that I finished it and I'm very glad I'm halfway back to my normal self! My goal is to stay out of the hospital and keep you all interested with my writing! Please also support me in my first draft of my new book!

THANK YOU AGAIN!

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_Haruhi moaned as she tossed and turned on her small mattress, the imagines of graveyards and rain thundering through her mind kept her annoyed soul subconsciously awake as tears streamed down her fragile face. Why was she crying, she suddenly wondered, had something happened that she didn't know about? Haruhi groaned as she tossed again only to let her hand rebound and throw itself across a warm and fuzzy being. Haruhi, not recalling sleeping next to anything, opened her chocolate brown eyes and sat up, looking down at the creature next to her. To her surprise it was not an animal or toy that she had hit, but a man. _

'_Hikaru?' Haruhi asked herself. Before any other possibly conclusion could enter her mind Haruhi lifted the blankets and looked down. Clothes, check. She glanced over at Hikaru, clothes fully on. Alright, so one possible outcome checked off, thank god. Haruhi glanced over at Hikaru, her eyes draping into a calm expression. She didn't understand why she wasn't yelling or waking the idiot up, it was like her body understood the situation that she was in, and it was telling her it was all ok. The girl laid back down next to him only to notice his eyes had black bags from lack of sleep and tears stained his face. He kept whispering someone's name underneath his breath as he choked back sobs but she couldn't make it out. _

_Her hands slowly wiped away the tears as she leaned in and kissed his head to comfort him. She took in a deep breath of the freshly watered hair, the sweet scent of rain overcoming her senses. Without thinking Haruhi pulled his head into her neck as she put her head down onto his. _

"_Haruhi." Hikaru whispered his head forming itself into her like a perfect mold for his head. Haruhi stared down at him restlessly, her body eventually giving in as she moved her hands so that they cradled the back of his head to her, her fingernails digging into his scalp as she gripped at his orange locks tightly. A choke escaped from her dryly as she thrust herself into him, dry sobs softly ringing through the air. _

"_I know I said no touching but please don't move." Haruhi cried out softly and weakly as she held onto him desperately. That was something about Hikaru that she never figured out in consciousness, with him conversations were hard, things suddenly became much more annoying, but unlike with anyone else, even Tamaki, smiles and frowns came naturally, tears fell easier and her mind never tried to hide. Tamaki was nearly the opposite, her face became flushed and often hid her real emotions in fear of not being up to his expectations. So why was she lying her crying onto Hikaru instead of calling Tamaki and whispering to him?_

_Haruhi took in a deep breath and let her dry sobs slowly come to an end as she sighed. The answer was in fact very simple._

_Haruhi slowly lifted her hands from his hair and stared at her hands. On her wedding finger sat a small red thread that was beaten, old, torn, and very weak. She looked at it curiously before lifting it ever so gently and tugging at it. Hikaru's hand suddenly twitched, the other end tied to his finger. Haruhi smiled very lightly and intertwined her red laced hand with his own. _

"Mmm Hikaru your heads too big." Haruhi whispered as she held her pillow to her. Haruhi hugged it to her chest and neck before realizing that the fuzzy hair and warm skin had been replaced by warm fabric. A cold chill rang through the air as Haruhi opened one eye. Above her, her father stood, terrified and twitching as he held Haruhi's blanket in his hand, his face plastered with annoyance and fear.

"Haruhi, what were you dreaming about?" He asked, twitching violently as a overprotective father should. For the first time in her life Haruhi faulted to answer quickly. She blinked innocently before calmly getting herself out of bed, acting annoyed at his question.

"Ha-hats daddy. Hikaru Kaoru and I were shopping for hats and they kept trying on ones that didn't fit. What did you think I was dreaming about?" Haruhi asked breathing heavily, her breath hot and her cheeks burning. What on earth had she dreamt about?! She didn't feel that way about Hikaru and she had nothing to cry about, neither did he, so what was going on in her mind? Haruhi calmed herself down as she quickly drank down a cup of orange juice, chugging down the contents as she slammed the glass bottle down on the table confidently.

"Ow!" Haruhi drew her hand back as the glass shattered, slicing her hand. Her father quickly ran into the room, eyes wide and full of concern at the sound of glass breaking. He stared at the shocked Haruhi as she kept her shaken brown eyes on the broken cup. Her father ran up to her and fussed over her bleeding hand, screaming at her frozen figure to let him help her as she only moved when he shook her.

"I broke mom's glass." Haruhi whispered as she stared at the shards, her mind not even registering her father's words. Her dad spun her around, gripping her shoulders so tightly Haruhi winced as she stared at her father's watering eyes.

"Da-dad. I'm sorry. Please don't be angry." Haruhi whispered quickly, fear coursing through her body. Her bleeding palm dripped onto his sleeve as he bit his lip, his eyes wavering. He pulled her in quickly, embracing her as tightly as he had before. He always got very emotional in these times, but s he didn't comprehend his true reasoning.

"…Haruhi…please be careful with those boys. Don't get hurt again, I'm begging you." He whispered, his voice choking with uneasiness.

"…I'm sorry dad I know that the bill really threw us off balance, I'll keep out of the hospital so I don't trouble you anymo-" Haruhi was cut off as her father suddenly thrust her out of his arms, his strong hands still holding onto her arms. Haruhi winced lightly as he dug his fingers into her skin out of fear.

"A-are you kidding Haruhi? You think this is because of the-the bill? Haruhi do you have any idea what I felt seeing you in that hospital room? You think I was thinking of the bill at that time?! Haruhi you scared the crap out of me! I thou-I thought…" He trailed off, his hands slowly releasing her as he took a step back. Haruhi rubbed her right arm, her breath becoming short. She didn't like seeing her dad like this; it scared her.

"…I…I gotta go dad. I've made you enough food to last you for two weeks." Haruhi said quickly. She grabbed her bag off the couch and threw it over her shoulder as she bolted for the door. As she stood in the doorway she could practically feel her father's agony as he waved behind her and whispered his goodbye.

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"Hikaru, wake up, we're leaving soon." A voice called out to the sleep boy but he could hardly register the sound. The loveliest dream of Haruhi sleeping beside him had gone into his mind that night, most likely only recalling the memories of an even older dream that couldn't come true. At this sad realization Hikaru moaned as his tired eyes opened to see the light silhouetting his brother's excited face. Hikaru gave a small cough before pulling himself up, making Kaoru sit up as well; his puppy like face tilting in curiosity as he moved his hand to put on Hikaru's forehead. Hikaru groaned and knocked his hand away before it could land though and rubbed his eyes half heartedly.

"Hikaru hurry up and get dressed the maid's got a limo waiting for us." Kaoru whispered as he gave his brother a huge innocent smile before running off to the closet and pulling out some of the outfits. He looked them over before shaking his head and switching shirts here and there and placing accessories next to them to see how they matched. Hikaru could only watch in amusement at his baby brother's instinct for fashion as he yawned and stretched out his arms.

"Here put this on." Kaoru demanded as he threw some nice looking shirt in his direction, deciding not to argue this early in the morning Hikaru placed the shirt over his head and leaned back against the headboard of his king bed. Kaoru stopped what he was doing and sighed a bit before walking over to the bed, placing his thin fingers on his hips.

"No Hikaru, you don't just put it on. You go," Kaoru put on a stern face, his eyebrows becoming a perfect line as he put on a scowl face and lowered his voice "'Why the hell should I? It's not like we're meeting anyone special, it's just Haruhi our little toy. I'll wear what I want.' and I reply" Kaoru shook his finger and went back to his normal voice "'But Hikaru, Haruhi is special and you should look your best' then you roll your eyes, blush and go 'keh.' , and go back to sleeping. I thought we'd learned this by now…"

Hikaru raised a brow as his brother tried to do an impression of him and turned on his side, wondering how on Earth his twin could not look like him in a charade of his own imagination. Hikaru suddenly burst into laughter before getting up and taking the pants that his brother had set out for him and putting on the accessories that came with it. Hikaru really never had a knack for this kind of stuff, but for someone who wasn't interested in the family business, Kaoru was really good at it.

"Kaoru you know you could probably handle that family name if you wanted to. If mom saw how well you handle clothes she'd be so proud." Hikaru laughed out as Kaoru sent a small glare in his brother's direction.

"You're sounding more like dad each day Hikaru, stop scaring me like that." Kaoru answered before throwing off his shirt, apparently not pleased with the look.

"Don't compare me to him." Hikaru snapped back as he ran his hands through his hair. His dad wasn't a bad person par say, he was actually a very kind man that had a good heart underneath it all. However he also had a lot of hardships and because the marriage with his mother was half arranged and half teenage love his mother and father didn't have very sturdy ground to stand on. He forgot things easily and when he was drunk he got disgraceful, throwing fits and yelling or giggling like an idiot and passing out in the hallway like some bum.

"Come on Hikaru lighten up, it's not like we have to deal with our parents a lot. You can at least tolerate them. Besides we get to go on a two week trip with Haruhi. Alone, as in, without Tamaki, as in, don't screw this up!" Kaoru laughed out as he brushed his hair back in the mirror, holding it back in a ponytail. Hikaru looked over at his brother sadly at those words. How could Kaoru smile and tell him to try and steal Haruhi's heart when secretly Kaoru longed to have her as well?

"…what?" Kaoru asked curiously as he watched his brother through the mirror. Hikaru gave his brother a weak smile before shaking his head solemnly.

"Nothing. I'm just starting to doubt whether or not I really am the best guy for Haruhi…" Hikaru whispered softly. Kaoru suddenly froze, his eyes becoming sad and thoughtful before he caught himself and started to laugh, quickly turning to face his brother as his comb fell off the desk.

"What are you talking about Hikaru?" He laughed out. Hikaru looked at his brothers strained and tense face and sighed before shaking his head and waving it off. Of course he had told his brother of his realization of loving Haruhi, and after a bit of 'I told you so' Kaoru had promised him then that he would get the two of them together, even if it killed him. Though Hikaru tried to ignore his wording choice it still hit him like a rock.

"I'm saying that Haruhi should decide who she loves. Who she needs, I think that I'd just be a burden to her and I don't want that to happen." Hikaru whispered seriously. Kaoru stared at his brother for a few minutes before laughing again and slapping his brother on the back.

"Jeez are you giving up already Hikaru? Maybe that accident really did mess up your brain you weirdo." Kaoru answered before heading out the open door. He suddenly started chanting a marching song for his war like perspective of love against Tamaki, he didn't even notice the maids laughing until Hikaru poked his head out and held out a pair of black slacks.

"Kaoru do you plan on meeting Haruhi with no pants? I didn't know you were that forward." Hikaru stated, his serious face suddenly bursting into laughter as he saw Kaoru's ears suddenly turn red from embarrassment. Hikaru chuckled as Kaoru stuttered and waved his hand quickly.

"Pa-pants who needs them?! Ha-ha-ha-ha I meant to do that, and here you're thinking that I didn't, seriously is there something wrong with your head?" Kaoru asked knocking his head as he continued down the hallway. Hikaru shook his head in laughter and handed the pants to a maid, requesting that she give them to him when he thought that no one was looking. The maid followed after the underwear-ed boy as Hikaru laughed once more and shut the door. It was going to be a long vacation.

--------------------------------

"It's weird for the sky to be this dark this time of month isn't it Haruhi?" Hikaru asked as he patted his brother's head, which was sleeping peacefully in his lap. The limo driver paid no mind to the young teen's conversations as he continued a blank ward drive toward their destination. Haruhi nodded numbly, her face twisted in deep thought. Hikaru waited for a few minutes for her to answer before pressing on in trying to get her attention.

"Then again it was raining the last time that we came down here on our summer break wasn't it?" Hikaru asked himself, half hoping for an answer from Haruhi, half hoping that the memory would merely snap her out of whatever it was she was currently focused on. His bright eyes looked over at her as she nodded and took in a soft breath. Hikaru then sighed and leaned against the leather seats to try and relax. Hikaru soon found himself biting onto his thumb, now a nervous habit that he had picked up ever since he had been in the coma. Actions, which spoke louder than words, were what caught Haruhi's eye in this particular cloudy day however. She did not talk, but merely watched him chew away the top callous at the top of his thumb in such tiny bits that she could not spot it's departure onto the floor.

"Is something bothering you Hikaru?" Haruhi asked tilting her head to the side at his antics. Hikaru looked up a bit amused that she was the one to ask him the question before he could ask her. He merely laughed and rubbed the back of his head considering all of the possible replies that he could tell her. That was the one thing that he hated about the new him, he was so cautious about the way he acted with her, he was sure that she would one day get irritated with his new tender nature and move onto someone with more guts and who spoke his mind; not that she was his in the first place.

"I was just wondering if something was bothering you, but then I thought that if I asked you, you wouldn't tell me and it would get really awkward, but then I realized what if it's something really bad and you're just waiting for someone to ask you what's wrong so that you can say it, then I'd be hurting you by making you sit silent and broad over on your problems instead of trying to fix them, then of course I started imagining what would be so horrible and I came up with at least twenty different possibilit-" Hikaru stopped, realizing that he had just said an entire monologue in one breath and laughed, closing his eyes as he looked back at Haruhi.

"….ok…what?" Haruhi asked as she lifted an eyebrow. Haruhi's nose scrunched up cutely making Hikaru realize that he had to calm his nerves as he sighed and looked forward, dropping his hands back onto his brother's head. Kaoru mumbled at the hit but brushed it off, grabbing Hikaru's hand as a pillow before turning back to sleep.

"…I was trying to ask, are you ok Haruhi? You look like you have a lot on your mind." Hikaru whispered as he turned his eyes to Haruhi shyly, a small blush on his cheeks. Haruhi shook her head slowly before turning back to her original pose, head on her wrist, baby brown eyes glued onto the world that flew past them in the car. Hikaru sighed and rubbed his temple.

'_Stupid of course she won't talk to you about things like that if you say things so bluntly! This is Haruhi we're talking about after all. Maybe if I just dance around the subject she'll-' _

As Hikaru slapped himself mentally his subconscious tweaked at him annoyingly telling him something was wrong. Haruhi, who to the naked eye seemed fine and content, made Hikaru start to shake. Haruhi was very good at hiding her feelings, but even her tiny body gave off silent vibes to those that cared about her that alerted them of the change in emotion.

Hikaru scooted over, carefully placing Kaoru's head down on the limo seat as he unbuckled his seatbelt and maneuvered his way beside Haruhi. Hikaru placed his chin on her back, letting her stare off into the constantly moving world as he merely leaned against her for her own comfort. Haruhi shifted her shoulders awkwardly as she felt his head on her cold back, but Hikaru did not move. Now getting angry at the boy she snapped her head backwards to yell at him only to be faced with a pair of two hurt and sad red puppy dog eyes. Haruhi froze and twitched angrily at how the thought that he was cute even passed through her mind.

"I'm fine Hikaru; you're starting to sound like Tamaki with all your worrying." Haruhi answered stubbornly. Hikaru didn't budge at her words though and merely shut his eyes at the feeling of her warm shirt. Haruhi shook a little as her face became beet red, why was she so nervous around this guy? Sure he saved her life, was her first friend, and appeared sleeping beside her in her dreams, but that didn't mean a damn thing! Haruhi bit her lip angrily as she whapped his head off of her with one smooth slap.

"I'm just worried about the medical bill ok?! Now get off my back-literally!" Haruhi answered, breathing deeply. Hikaru looked up at her, not used to her blowing up in his face, but he merely smiled knowing that she didn't really mean to yell. Haruhi was just so darn stubborn, and her little outburst was technically a good sign for him. Hikaru laughed at his victory and nodded before sitting straight and placing his arm around her shoulder playfully. Today he would be his old self until Haruhi was back to her old self as well.

"So toots, how does it feel to be flying the coop with a couple of studs like us?" Hikaru asked with an accent that he had heard once in an old American film. Haruhi stared at him uncertainly before laughing and punching him in the chest lightly. She laughed heartily as a small part of her leaned into the arm that was wrapped around her.

"I gotta tell ya, it feels like if we get caught by the coppers I'll be one lucky doll." Haruhi answered as she laughed, trying to mimic his accent. Hikaru let out a large and chuckle as he covered half of his mouse, turning his head away.

"Haruhi, you're horrible at this. Here it's more like this, American women sat really funny and did a look like this-" He answered as he held laughed once more. Suddenly Hikaru pulled his arm away from Haruhi before placing a sluggish pose. He turned to Haruhi, letting his head fall limply as he closed his eyes halfway. The boy gave a soft, girlish sigh as he put two fingers to his lips like he was taking a drag of a cigarette.

"Studs, ya gotta be kiddin me, you're more like a couple'a sardines tryin' to pass for tuna. Now get your sad scaley butt over here and remind me why I love ya'." Hikaru whispered in a girlish sassy tone. Haruhi let out a soft laugh as she pretended to tip her hat. Hikaru looked out the window and saw what looked to be a white car, deciding to take the game even further Hikaru suddenly grabbed Haruhi and wrapped his arms around her shoulders.

"Ah no it's the coppers, duck Haruhi!" Hikaru yelled as he suddenly, and rather uncontrollably, fell backwards onto the seat so that they weren't seen by anyone outside. Haruhi fought against his grip as she blushed but Hikaru merely laughed heartily, his long hair falling against the seat.

"You idiot let me go." Haruhi protested as he closed his eyes. "Just because you slept next to me last time does NOT mean you can do it now!"

"…Huh?" Hikaru asked softly, not even registering what she was talking about. Haruhi blushed and looked away as Hikaru swam through a puddle of his memories. Sleeping together? Well the only time he remembered doing that was the first night that Kaoru died, but that wasn't really Haruhi there was it?

But…if she remembered it, what else did she remember? So there was hope?! At that thought Hikaru's body shut down. Hikaru's face became relaxed as he took in softer breaths, it had been so long since he had slept properly and now it was like a drug had been thrust into his throat and forcing him into sleep. He breathed heavily as sweat dripped down his forehead, his stomach turned nauseous but the thought of sleeping was too good to pass up.

Haruhi, noticing that he wasn't letting go became tense as she tried to pry away his fingers from his shoulder that kept her attached to him. Haruhi sighed as he noticed what a death like grip he had, and each time that she tried to get free he would only fight back. Haruhi looked around quickly, Kaoru was asleep, and so was Hikaru, the limo driver never looked back and the windows were tinted so that no one could look inside. Blushing immensely Haruhi brushed her bangs aside as she looked down at the sleeping boy underneath her. He really was like a child when he slept.

It was weird how a few months ago Haruhi wouldn't have minded the position that Hikaru had held her in, so why was it so different now? Haruhi took in a small gulp as she felt her heart beat all the way up to her throat. Haruhi slowly lifted her left hand and stared at her fingers curiously; no thread…

Haruhi's eyes softened as she looked down at the boy. Hikaru was now peacefully still and obviously gone from the world of reality. Haruhi, deciding to give in to her situation, slowly and carefully placed herself in a comfortable position on top of him so that he wouldn't be disturbed. Putting her head down on his chest she closed her eyes as well, it would be a while before they reached their destination, and since they were all close friends, touching like this wouldn't mean anything right?

That's right, some friends even kissed and hugged on a regular basis, it didn't mean anything, it just showed that they had a good and confident relationship. Haruhi nodded to her own thoughts as she gripped at his shirt to make sure that she wouldn't fall when they reached turns. Haruhi yawned as she felt herself being thrown into dreams by the warm aura that vibrated off of Hikaru's chest. She mumbled to herself not to be drawn in by the temptation of sleep, but it was hard when his muscles fit her cheek so perfectly.

Haruhi's short hair fell over her face as she took in a deep breath of his scent, unable to stand the comfortable situation any longer. The girl gave in and closed her eyes serenely, wondering what she was doing. She wanted to ask herself more deeply and on a more honest level, but the truth was, she really didn't care what the answer was at the moment. Hikaru was her pillow, his warmth her blanket, and his kind nature her protection from herself.

The red ribbon could wait, for now, dreams awaited.

"_Ha-ha-ha commoner, commoner, dirty little commoner child!" A small child shook as she sat in the grass. Her small brown bangs fell over her sad face as she crammed her knees into her small torso. Her dress fell against the ground as she whispered something under her breath. Around the girl boys sat laughing and chanting, pointing and gaping. They were all very well dressed and their hair was slicked back and styled. The young girl cursed to herself as she swore on her bad luck. Her mother had dropped her off at the wrong park to play at and now she was stuck with a bunch of mean children who were too privileged for their own good. The sensitive girl started to sniff as she felt tears coming into her eyes. The boys around her all giggled at her pain, making her twinge with ache. Why did they enjoy making fun of her? What had she ever done to them? All she had done was say hello._

"_Wow I've never seen a commoner up close before, are all of them this dirty?" One of the boys asked as they walked up and stared into her eyes curiously before reaching out to touch her. The girl, afraid of getting hit, slapped her hand up and knocked his hand away as tears poured easily. The boy stared at her, half appalled, and half intrigued by her action. He suddenly started to laugh in a much more scary way than they had before. He pointed to her tears, giggling like mad._

"_Ohhh…we made the dirty girl cry." He whispered to all of his buddies. The boys all laughed and then started to imitate her girlish action by bursting out in laughter and pretending to sob on the ground. The girl wiped away her tears quickly, trying to hide her pain away._

"_P-please stop" The small child whispered as she hiccupped and wiped at her tears childishly. They all laughed and started their chanting again, this time louder so that the entire playground could hear it. Her lip quivered as she took in large breaths to hold back her sobs, she didn't want them to see her cry again but she couldn't hold it back anymore. The girl suddenly stood, her tears still falling as she stormed over to the boy that had started the ruckus._

"_I said please stop you meanie heads!" The girl yelled as she pointed her finger at the boy. He looked at her fearfully before laughing and putting his hands up in the sign of surrender. _

"_What are you gonna do hit me? My mommy would take your family down easily, you wouldn't even dare you little dirty girl." He whispered with malice in his high pitched voice. The small girl quivered again, wiping at her eyes as she suddenly ducked her head down so he wouldn't see her sob. A sharp object whizzed over her head just as she did however and hit the boy she was talking to square in the forehead making him fall over on the ground. _

"_A-ah…" The girl looked up quickly and saw the boy's eyes turn wide as he scrambled up, a small bruise on his forehead already formulating as he ran. The rest, taking the same turn as their leader, ran for the hills with him. The young girl looked around for who had thrown the stone and noticed a young boy walking out of the bushes with a hand full of rocks. _

"_Darn it I missed." He whispered as the girl stared at him. He sighed and rubbed his head before looking up at her. _

"_What? I was aiming for you." The girl, not saying a word, suddenly burst into happy giggles, a large and irreplaceable smile finding it's way onto her face as she laughed and ran over to him happily. She stayed by his side as he walked around in circles and back and forth to try and get rid of her. He blushed and tried to shoo her off._

"_What I was! Hey stop doing that- don't you realize I'm the enemy, ah dirty commoner girl stop!"_

Little could Haruhi notice the small smile plastered on Kaoru's face as he squeezed his eyes shut, forcing himself not to look at the scene that he knew was unfolding. He didn't want his cover blown, after all, how could Haruhi and Hikaru bond when he was there to impose on their conversation? Kaoru felt a small sting in his chest but, as he unclenched his fist, he forced it back into the corner of his heart. After making sure that Haruhi was really asleep by opening one eye very lightly he sat awake, careful not to disturb the two.

"Please Mother Nature, if you can hear me, tomorrow, send those two a thunderstorm…."


	3. The Hidden Illness

Authors Note: Hi everyone, sorry it took so long, I got sick again. I hope that this chapter makes up for it though. It's 5 am here so I'm going to get some sleep!

Um, I know this is a bit to ask, but if there are any type of people who would like to help me, I'd really appreciate it. Like I said, I write this fan-fic for you guys, so I need to know what you like and what you don't. Um so I have short little choice questions, if anyone could fill them out that would be great. All you have to put is a number 1-10 on if you like it (10) or if it makes you tick (1). You can put it in a review or send it to me in an email if you'd like to add a message or something.

Flashbacks:

Dreams:

Alternate Universe:

Really Long Chapters:

Rather Short Chapters:

Environment Descriptions:

Action/Emotion Descriptions:

Lime/Lemon in Fics:

Angst:

Comedy:

Romance:

Plot Twist:

Death:

First Person:

Again thanks everyone it means a lot to me….

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"I can't believe it actually started raining…"

"Aha well you know Karuizawa, so confusing and what not…"

Hikaru and Haruhi stared at the large pension as rain poured down upon its rooftop, leaving them soaked and rather confused. It was sprinkling before yes, but this was just plain ridiculous. Behind them a small chuckle could be heard, making Hikaru turn his head as Kaoru smiled innocently. Hikaru felt a small chill run down his spine at the smile but he didn't question its true intentions. It wasn't like Kaoru could change the weather right? Hikaru glanced over at Haruhi, who seemed oddly calm.

"So remind me why we're staying at exactly the same hotel that we did last summer?" Haruhi asked with a bit of an annoyed tone as she looked back at the two boys. They both laughed in symmetry as they rubbed the back of their heads.

"Well, familiarity for one. Besides the Author is getting really lazy with trying to get everyone to understand their environment and isn't going to pretend she knows anything about Japan, so using the place that you two had your fist date to show character growth with a bunch of Hikaru and Haruhi supporters seemed like a good idea at the time" Kaoru stated simply. Hikaru and Haruhi both looked at him with open mouths as he looked around quickly. Did he say that out loud? He laughed nervously and waved his hand quickly to downplay his mistake.

"I mean, it holds memories?" Kaoru questioned, seeing if they would bite. Haruhi and Hikaru both shrugged, accepting the answer as they headed into the Inn. Haruhi gave a soft gasp as she saw the old pension, which had been just opening up when they last visited, hustling and bustling with customers. Employees, all dressed in light pink aprons, ran through the hotel and guest expertly as they attempted to serve all of the customers needs at once.

"Wow. Do you think we'll be able to get a room?" Hikaru asked gently to Haruhi and Kaoru as the line to check in got longer and longer. Haruhi gave a soft sigh as she looked down at the ground; she had been really looking forward to staying here too.

"Haruhi?! Boys is that you?!" A high pitched voice called out lovingly through the crowd. Haruhi's head perked up, a small antenna evolving from her hair as her unusually sad eyes lit with joy.

"Mi-Misuzu?!" Haruhi called out happily. Finally, someone she knew and trusted in this mess of people! The girl, overcome with joy at seeing her former employer, ran to the transvestite with a large smile. The man, laughing with joy as the cute girl ran to him, excused himself through the crowd of customers.

"Haruhi, oh you grew up so much, you look so cute." The man cooed out as he took her by the shoulders, looking at her as he ran his big hand through her hair. Kaoru and Hikaru laughed slightly as they both walked over to the two of them. Hikaru was almost a bit jealous that the simple voice of this man could make Haruhi so happy, but he pushed it aside. Haruhi, after hugging the man quickly, pulled away, obviously having other motives as she smiled cutely.

"Have you heard from my dad? Do you two still keep in touch?" She asked quickly, the huge smile still plastered on her face as Misuzu gave her a weak smile as he ran his hand gently across her head as if to calm her down before she had even started to become unhappy. Haruhi looked up at him once more hopefully before he shook his head.

"I'm sorry dear I really am…if I could help you in any way I would, but your father's already refused me a dozen times, he won't even return my phone calls." The man whispered with a large sigh as he let his head fall. Haruhi sighed and slowly unwrapped her arms from around him, though she continued to keep about a forced happy aura so that no one would worry. Hikaru suddenly held onto Kaoru's shoulder as his knees seemed to give in for a moment; as Haruhi and the man talked Kaoru slowly turned to his Brother, who looked rather pale.

"Hey Hikaru are you ok?" Kaoru asked in a whisper. Hikaru slowly nodded as he let himself rest against his brother for a few moments as he rubbed his temple forcing his eyes closed as he took in a deep breath. Hikaru held in a moan as the world once again shifted underneath his feet, everything was moving and his head was dizzy. Hikaru nodded again to convince Kaoru that he was alright as he suavely pulled himself together.

"Wait, why can' I work here for the summer?" Haruhi asked in a rather hurt tone. This brought Hikaru's attention back to the girl as he looked at her as she trembled while the man explained that every position had been filled. Hikaru raised a brow as he watched the short handed staff attempt to fill all of the guest needs in a bustle. Haruhi tried to reason with the man only to be brought to a sorrowful defeat as he gave her a weak smile.

"Don't worry Haruhi, you're still a student, you shouldn't be worrying over money and small things like that. Enjoy your summer with your lovely friends ok? Have a good time for once." The man laughed out. Haruhi looked down at the ground, a small cloud of thoughtfulness hanging over her as the man led them over to the counter to sign in. Hikaru waited for Kaoru to go ahead of him as he slowly headed over next to Haruhi, his eyes closing as he sighed and let his arm rest against her.

She seemed to relax as his arm went against her shoulders but that was short-lived as she became tense and alert. Hikaru sighed and nudged her to come and sit down with him. Haruhi, though in no place to argue, rolled her eyes as they sat down in a few of the chairs in the lobby. Haruhi placed her elbow on her knees as she rested her hands on her wrist, her bright brown eyes avoiding any part of him. Hikaru leaned against the chair, letting his head and neck fall backwards so that he could sigh without her hearing him. He had to wonder what was going on at home that Haruhi had to have a job.

"Haruhi, he's right you know, I'm sure that you can survive a few months on what your father is earning, besides, if you ever need help it's not like you have a shortage of friends to ask. You know everyone is more than willing to help you out if you need it right?" Hikaru asked, raising his head to look back at her. Haruhi took a minute to gather herself as she forced out a giggle and nodded, her almost flawless childish grin flashing at him as she stood up.

"I understand Hikaru hehe. Thank you." Haruhi whispered happily as she started off. Hikaru glared at her back as he got up quickly, grabbing her arm to turn her around. Haruhi turned a bit scared at his tight grip as he looked down at her with anger. The girl flinched and closed her eyes tightly as she turned her head to avoid being hit. Haruhi blinked in confusion however as she felt Hikaru slap her arm with two fingers like a father would a small child.

"Stop that." Hikaru said simply as he looked down at her with a stern expression. Haruhi blinked before rubbing her arm lightly even though he hadn't actually hurt her. Hikaru let go of her quickly at seeing the slightly hurt girl. He stared at his hand a bit before shaking his head quickly to try and get himself out of the odd mood.

"Stop…stop what?" Haruhi asked, still in utter shock that he had acted that way. Usually he would get angry and scream at her for being an idiot and not doing what he wanted, and even though it had never happened before, she had always assumed that he would hit her if the time came for it. However now he just scolded her like a child with such a calm face, he was nearly a different person.

"Stop faking those smiles…you think that it makes us feel better, or that it eludes us from the truth, but it really just hurts us more knowing that you don't trust us enough to say what's on your mind. Haruhi if something is going on you know that you have me and Kaoru to depend on, and as much as I hate to admit it, you really do have the entire Host Club. I mean, Honey is like the best person to cheer a person up ever, Mori is a great listener, Kyouya, as odd as it sounds, actually gives pretty good advise, Tamaki's such and idiot you'll be forced to forget whatever it is that made you sad, and me and Kaoru are so damn sexy you can't think of anything else." Hikaru said with a dead serious expression making Haruhi have to bite her lip to keep from laughing, was he trying to reassure her or build up his own ego? The man smiled at seeing her hold in laughter and continued.

"I mean, we didn't all fall in love with some weird giddy all the time girl, so don't need to pretend to be one ok? We love you for all of your sarcastic jokes and oh so dense exterior, no need to change." Hikaru laughed out as he rubbed her hair quickly, messing it up on top of her head.

"Hey! Damn rich bastard!" Haruhi mumbled angrily as she tried to smooth out the fuzz on top of her head. Hikaru laughed as he shouted success and picked her up, throwing her over his shoulder. Haruhi let out an 'oof' as she hit his skin and blinked before growing heatedly and hitting him.

"Lemmee go! Hikaru this really isn't helping your case!" Haruhi shouted as Hikaru started up the stairs with her, a large and proud grin spread across his face as he laughed and ignored her constant yells. Kaoru looked up from the check in desk and laughed a bit nervously as well before quickly giving his information and heading after the two. Hikaru looked in front of him with determined eyes as he carried her in his arms with a bit of trouble, his knees were shaking and the world had started to spin again.

"Ugh…dizzy…" Hikaru whispered as his eyes half closed again. Haruhi's fighting suddenly stopped as she felt the difference in Hikaru's grip on her, she turned her head to him as she rubbed his head to try and wake him up. What was going on with the boy? Haruhi jumped down, afraid that her weight was taking too heavy of a toll on him.

"Hikaru, you ok?" Haruhi asked tenderly. Hikaru glanced down at her as he swayed slightly before holding his head in both of his hands. He just lectured her about asking for help when you need it, yet he couldn't even get himself to utter the dreaded words to him. Desperate to get out of the situation his mind registered what she had just done. He blinked as he looked down at her again, pointing an accusing finger.

"You could have jumped down the entire time?!" He asked in a shocked voice. Haruhi blinked innocently before looking at her feet, which were firmly planted on the floor. She blushed lightly before looking back up.

"Yea I guess I could." Haruhi answered simply. Hikaru laughed as he held onto his stomach making her tilt her head in what was so funny about the situation. Hikaru suddenly looked into her curious eyes deviously as he got down to her level by stepping down on a step. Haruhi blushed as he put a hand on her cheek and brought her head up so that he could whisper into her ear just softly enough for no one else to hear.

"Ah…so I guess that you liked me carrying you, eh Haruhi?" He asked smoothly as Haruhi turned a deep shade of red before twitching angrily. She punched him in the chest quickly, making him fall of a few steps as she glared at him angrily.

"You wish." Haruhi answered before storming up the stairs and turning quickly around the corner. Hikaru waited until she was out of his sight before laughing like a total idiot. Now that was the Haruhi he knew all to well! Hikaru started to calm down as he replayed that beautiful mix of shock and embarrassment in his mind, it was rather nostalgic, but from where did he remember it? Hikaru's eyes shot open as he stared at the spot where Haruhi once stood. Haruhi's expression, that's right, it reminded him of their first kiss. Hikaru couldn't hold it in anymore as he laughed outrageously, causing all eyes to be on him. He started to loose breath from rolling on the floor, holding his stomach and laughing at his own little joke as Kaoru stood next to him, nudging him with his foot in the stomach lightly as he waited for his brother to get over himself.

"Come on Hikaru it wasn't that funny."

Hikaru laughed again before picking himself up and waving it off. Yea, it really wasn't that funny, he should probably go make sure that Haruhi was alright. The boy got on his feet and went up the stairs quickly before turning the corner to look for her. She was a smart girl and had most likely already figured out what level of rooms they were to be staying in, and so he headed towards the double rooms quickly. Since Haruhi had been walked at an angry pace and Hikaru had now started into a run the two caught up rather quickly, Haruhi went up and down the aisle, as smart as she was, unable to figure out her room number.

"It's number 31." Hikaru answered for her as he stood at the end of the hallway, his happy eyes glancing at her. Haruhi gave a soft scoff, determined to keep up her act of anger as she stormed over to the door to room number 31 and turned the handle quickly to go inside. However, Haruhi forgot one minor detail- the room was locked. Determined Haruhi tried again, this time with more force as she fiddled with the knob discreetly.

"Great exit" Hikaru laughed out as he put his hands in his pockets.

"Hey Haruhi. Something wrong?" Kaoru whispered happily as Hikaru passed by her, a small laugh still escaping him as she stood in front of her room angrily, a bright blush evident on her cheeks. Kaoru stopped so that he was standing in front of her, still smiling and oblivious to the fact that the two had even had a small fight. Haruhi mumbled something under her breath making Kaoru tilt his head in curiosity.

"I'm sorry Haruhi I didn't catch that, could you please repeat it?" Kaoru asked sweetly. Haruhi gave an angry sigh before turning her head stubbornly and repeating the words through gritted teeth. It was so hard to keep an angry face when embarrassment ran through every inch of her veins.

"…I don't have my room key." Haruhi whispered under her breath. Kaoru blinked for a few moments before laughing softly and handing her the old bronze key. Haruhi whispered a small and forced thank you through her teeth as she thrust the key into the socket and pushed the door open.

"The jerk." Haruhi whispered to herself as she threw her light sweater off of her torso and onto the bed. Haruhi sighed as she ran her hands through her hair lightly, causing her bangs to fall messily against her face. Her hair had grown down to her neck during the summer and the lack of styling had made it messy and scrappy. Plopping down on the bed Haruhi closed her eyes; letting her troubles drift away for a few moments as she took in a deep breath.

"Why is he always trying to embarrass me?" Haruhi asked as she rubbed her back awkwardly. The girl had been working twenty four seven after school and during free hours ever since she had been released from the hospital and the burden of constantly moving was taking it's toll. Maybe everyone was right, she should just relax. The girl took in a deep breath again and let her mind roam as she felt herself melting into the soft bed.

Well…ok so Hikaru wasn't really that bad. After all it was his idea to go on a get away for her, and he did use carefully chosen words when he could have just bluntly told her that she was being a fake to everyone and they all knew it. Maybe cooking him a proper meal would be a good way of thanks? Haruhi sighed once more as she closed her eyes, the gentle sound of rain hitting the rooftop causing her to drift, it wasn't very late even though the sky was stormy, but her body was tired. If she was going to cook she could just borrow the kitchen and go to a local grocery store.

Cooking was one of the few things that Haruhi actually enjoyed, she was very good at it, and the feeling of making something out of bare ingredients was exhilarating. But most of all, and probably the main reason that she had loved cooking so much, were because of the connection she felt with her mom when she did it. Haruhi sighed as she opened her eyes halfway, her emotions twirling around her like a typhoon as she tried to re-create that feeling. It was…comforting, like a warm blanket being pulled over her. It was almost like nothing bad had ever happened, and that her mother was standing right beside her, moving her hands like puppet strings.

Cooking was her passion, but this she hid away from all eyes willing to see. To everyone else she was the little genius Haruhi, and that's all she would ever let them see.

Haruhi pushed herself up subconsciously as she headed down the hall without paying much mind to where she was going. She had been having weird dreams ever since Hikaru had gotten out of the hospital, and not normal, fly around on a pig in the Saudi Desert dreams, dreams of death, dreams of torture, dreams of romance. Haruhi shook her head quickly as another blush appeared on her cheek. It was getting late and if she wanted to get dinner started she should leave soon. Her hand knocked at the room next to hers as she thought about what type of dish she would like to make.

"Haruhi?" Hikaru asked as he looked down at the dazed girl.

'_Maybe something with chicken…or should I just stick to the classic dishes? Maybe something French, I've never done anything like that before, though I'm sure those stupid rich bastards have tasted all the best of foods from all over the world so attempting to make a fine cuisine would be wasted on them…'_

"Hi, wanna walk down to the store with me? I'm afraid to go out in the dark on my own" Haruhi asked half mindedly, her entire body relaxed due to her lack of attention. Hikaru stared at her wide eyed, obviously shocked that she would even admit being afraid of going out on her own, none the less saying it with such a serious and carefree face. Hikaru slowly nodded before grabbing his coat and closing the door behind him. Hikaru turned his head as he coughed into his shoulder heavily, bringing back thought into Haruhi's eyes for a moment. However the horrid cough didn't seem to stop him as he turned to stand beside the girl.

"Yea sure…come on." He whispered cautiously as he put an arm around the dozed girl again as they walked. Haruhi seemed to be in an unordinary daze as she walked, his hand holding onto her shoulder, not only for his own comfort, but to make sure that she did not fall in the process. Hikaru stared down at her right hand, which was shaking softly, Hikaru looked around in all directions as they got into the crowded lobby, and, in a moment of impulse, pulled his hand from her shoulder and put his hand over her own.

Haruhi herself did not react to the move, it was like she didn't even feel it at all, but her hand, which he had grown to love so much, twitched at his touch. Hikaru blushed slightly as her soft fingers slowly intertwined within his own, Haruhi's face showing no sign of noticing her movement. Hikaru smiled happily as he clenched onto her hand for a mere second, even if Haruhi didn't remember the love that they had before, as long as her hand still acknowledged his presence, his patience would never wear thin.

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"You really didn't have to come out with me you know!" Haruhi yelled as she carried the bags from the general store in her arms as she tried to keep it from falling. Hikaru rolled his eyes and took the heavy bags from her, placing them on his shoulder as he let out a deep sigh. She was so stubborn sometimes.

"Haruhi you're the one that asked me to come remember? You said that you didn't like walking around in the dark" Hikaru whispered in an annoyed tone at her pitiful defenses as Haruhi turned her head away quickly. Hikaru could have laughed but he decided that she had obviously been humiliated enough today. They had only gotten into the store when Haruhi snapped out of her trance and pulled her hand out of Hikaru's so his trip of romance was broken off as early as it had come.

"So is there anywhere else that we have to go to?" Hikaru asked pleasurably, he liked spending time with Haruhi; it was fun, even if she denied it. The rain poured hard on them, and chance was that they would most likely catch colds if they didn't get out if quickly, but the hotel was only a little while away, and a few more minutes wouldn't hurt. Hikaru hid a cough in his shoulder as he waited for Haruhi to answer. The girl shook her head a bit before her eyes caught sight of small fashion boutique. Hikaru followed her eyes and glanced up at the store before laughing and getting his head down to her level.

"Is my little Haruhi finally growing up?" He teased. Haruhi looked back at him with an angry glare before shaking her head and opening her purse. Hikaru was surprised at her actions but took the wallet from her hands and placed it in his pocket. She fussed but he merely pushed her toward the store. Haruhi growled but merely followed knowing she wouldn't win this fight yet.

"Sow hat caught your eye?" Hikaru asked curiously. Haruhi looked back up at the window, which was on the second story, with a bit of a laugh as she pointed to a red vintage dress that hung on a plastic hanger for all to see, along with its price tag.

"My dad…he really wanted that dress when we saw it in the store, but he was paying for my bills at the time and couldn't afford it…but it looks like its on sale so…" Haruhi trailed off a bit as Hikaru bit his lip, now feeling very bad for even teasing her a bit. Hikaru laughed a bit nervously and nodded as he rubbed her head.

"I understand, it must be hard, but you're doing well…we'll just take the stairs and get that for your father." Hikaru reassured her. Haruhi seemed to have been stopped by something though as she stood in front of the stairs, holding back what seemed to be chuckles as she pointed to a sign in front of the stairs. Hikaru tilted his head a bit as he read why she had pointed to.

"_Stairs unsafe please use elevator_" Hikaru blinked for a few moments, unsure that if what he had read was actually not just some stupid prank. Haruhi suddenly burst into giggles as she wiped at her eyes before shaking her head and heading toward the elevator, after all, why risk it right? Hikaru didn't feel well going into the elevator in this storm though, and the handwritten sign seemed to have oddly familiar handwriting.

"Hikaru come on would ya?" Haruhi asked as she stepped into the elevators doors. Hikaru slowly nodded, still very cautious as he took a step in with her. He looked outside, coughing a bit to himself as he started to become dizzy again. He shook it off before suddenly gripping onto the elevator side as the elevator started to move.

"Hikaru are you alright?" Haruhi asked tenderly, just as she did though the elevator came to a rough stop, shaking them both as Haruhi let out a small yell before holding onto the side of the elevator as it shook violently.

"Wh-what's going on?!" Haruhi asked suddenly as the elevator stopped. The lights flickered on and off before finally burning out. Haruhi took in soft breaths as she felt around the floor for Hikaru, who had fallen in the shake. Hikaru's coughs gave her a clue as she got on her knees and scooted over to his echoes. Hikaru, who she could faintly outline, was laying halfway stretched out in the elevator, heavy coughs shaking his entire torso.

Haruhi looked at him, very confused, before placing her hand on his forehead. Hikaru's eyes shot open as he panicked, trying to move her hand, he pushed it away as Haruhi stared at him in distress. Hikaru looked away, obviously not wanting to see her hurt brown eyes as he once again started to cough harshly, this time having to resort to taking in deep breaths to regain his breath.

"YOU IDIOT!" Haruhi yelled as she hit him with one of the grocery bags.

"YOU HAD A FEVER AND YOU CAME ON THIS TRIP ANYWAY?! IN THE RAIN?!" Haruhi screamed out as she hit him again. Hikaru flinched as she hit him, and turned his head away, now not able to breathe normally. His eyes closed halfway as everything started to spin underneath him. He clutched his shirt tightly as he tried to lift his head.

"…I-…I didn't think it was that bad…" Hikaru whispered through a hoarse voice. "It was coming and going and I thought that if I ignored it-it would go away…"

Haruhi looked more than hurt through the dark scenery as she continued to hit him weakly with her fist. She shook violently as she suddenly pulled him off the ground to look at his eyes. Hikaru tried to keep them open so that she couldn't be too angry at him, but they kept closing. Haruhi raised her hand to slap him, but her shivering hands couldn't get more than halfway to his face before stopping.

"…idiot…" Haruhi whispered as she pushed his wet hair out of his face with one hand as she pressed her forehead against his own to re-check his fever. Hikaru blushed a deep shade of red through the darkness as she moved her knees to each side of him so that she would fit in the cramped area. Hikaru now started to shake as he tried to contain himself, only helping his desire to take her in his arms by telling himself she was a different girl than the one who had accepted him before.

"Ha-Haruhi please don't sit so close…it's giving off a bad impression" Hikaru whispered to her honestly, it was hard dealing the dense girl, so telling her bluntly was the only way to get the message through. Haruhi didn't move though as she kept her forehead against his, her eyes angry and sad at the same time. Haruhi didn't even hear his pathetic call as she focused on not hurting the boy.

"DON'T TAKE YOUR HEALTH SO INSERIOUSLY! YOU WILL NOT DIE ON ME YOU UNDERSTAND?!" Haruhi yelled, suddenly loosing it as she felt herself shaking so badly that her face couldn't keep still even against Hikaru's steady body. Haruhi clenched her eyes together as she felt a moment of weakness show through her. Hikaru stared at her as his breathing became panting, his eyes closing to a sliver.

"…d-don't…worry…I'm not gonna die…not yet…I'm not…I'm not finished with the story…" Hikaru whispered as he swayed.

"Forgive me…for this…" Hikaru whispered as his body suddenly stopped functioning, his eyes suddenly closing. He fell against Haruhi's shoulder, his face stuck into her cold neck, making her feel the extent of his warm forehead. Haruhi jumped a bit as she looked around suddenly, no medicine, no doctor to help. Haruhi flinched as she suddenly wrapped her arms around the cold boy to warm him up, pulling him close to try and comfort him.

"Help? SOMEBODY?! SOMEBODY PLEASE HELP!"

The sudden flash of lightning stopped Haruhi's crys in a second.

Outside a lone figure sat in the rain, orange hair falling across his face as he twirled some of the missing elevator cords in his hands sadly. Suddenly soft tears began streaming down his cheeks as he wiped at them quickly, not understanding why his heart suddenly felt so bad.


	4. The Way She Feels

Authors note: Hello everyone, not much to say about this chapter except it is really just starting and introducing all of the lovely angst you have to look forward to in the next six/ sixteen chapters. I really want to make sure that everyone reads the ending, so I have thought of some ways that I can cut down on some of the things I was planning on doing, and add some more into this story so that it would in fact be a twenty chapter or longer book. But I need to know if that is better for you guys or not cause it really doesn't matter to me, reviews are my inspiration and if I know what you guys like I can put more into the story for you.

Anywho thank you again and hope you enjoy this chapter. The next will be the introduction of the Sakura Twins. Oh you'll all enjoy them. Haha, bye guys!

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Kaoru flinched as he felt the hot tears stroll down his cheeks. He loved Haruhi, he really did, from the simple way her eyes would light up when she smiled, to the more complex way that she always seemed to have something on her mind, even when in conversation. She always took things to a deeper level, but never analyzed, she understood peoples emotions incredibly well, but was also so dense to the emotions directed at her it was scary. Yes, there was no denying it that he was in love with the girl, but who could blame him? Kaoru let out a soft breath as he wiped at his eyes with his sleeve, he didn't even know why he was crying; after all, he loved his brother more than Haruhi.

Yet the sad truth had hit him like lightning, even if he loved Hikaru more than Haruhi, it just meant that by giving up, he was giving them both up. He was loosing the two most important people in his life to one another. Kaoru heaved a heavy and shaky dry sob as he placed his head in-between his lifted knees. He just wanted Hikaru and Haruhi to be happy, so why did it hurt so much? Kaoru gripped his chest as he let out heavy breaths, God it hurt.

Kaoru dared to look up at the dreary scene that was before him as he held back his tears, he was a grown man, and crying was not something he was allowed to due. Kaoru took in a deep breath as his eyes looked straight up and into the pounding down rain. Lightning struck not to far from the elevator, and for a few seconds Haruhi's terrified face passed by his mind, he quickly shook it out though. Haruhi would be fine with Hikaru to protect her. Kaoru held tightly onto his knees at this. Why was it that he didn't like the idea of Hikaru protecting Haruhi? Why was it, whenever he saw his twin, with the exact same face, smiling and holding onto her, his spirit tore in two? Kaoru's shoulder made a violent twitch at the idea of Hikaru in that elevator, holding her in his arms and wiping her tear stained face. His expression went from depressed to angry as his grip tightened on his own skin.

Kaoru felt something rise inside of him that he had never before felt. It was consuming and took over every inch of his body as he tried to control it, the images still playing in his mind. He thought that Hikaru had changed when he came out of the coma; he thought that he had learned to appreciate his brother more, and that in a lot of sense was true. So why, why did he feel that the biggest gift his brother could have offered him, was stolen from his grasp? Hikaru was supposed to be the big brother, and with this stupid, 'mature' mask he was putting on, couldn't he look past Kaoru's own disguise?

So why was it then, that Kaoru was sitting here in the pouring rain, allowing his brother to steal the girl that he believed would be better hidden in his own arms? Kaoru sighed as he clenched onto the elevator cords before throwing them as far as he could with an angry grunt, fire lighting in his eyes as he clenched his teeth angrily. He loved his brother, and that was the only excuse he could think of. Maybe it wouldn't have hurt so much if Hikaru wasn't so dense, if he could at least notice Kaoru's pain and try and console him. If Hikaru won in a fair fight, then he would be content, but with Hikaru, the tricks would never stop pouring out of his bag so all Kaoru could do was throw in his own tricks to speed up the process. It really was true then, nice guys always loose in the end.

"FUCK YOU- YOU UNGRATEFUL BASTARD! I WISH YOU WERE DEAD!" Kaoru yelled his entire body tense as he chucked a stone at the street. A car passed by like a flash of light as Kaoru flinched and rubbed his eyes. What was he thinking trying to blame this all on Hikaru? Hikaru was just a child, whether Kaoru wanted to admit it or not, and not matter how much he grew he would always be a child. That quality was what most people loved about him, including Kaoru, but it was so infuriating to deal with in these types of situations. Or maybe…it was just infuriating falling for a girl he knew his brother loved.

Kaoru flinched, his head snapping up as he felt hot tears fall down his cold pale cheeks. His pupils shook with shock and realization as Kaoru covered his mouth, feeling like throwing up. That's right; Hikaru was his big brother, nearly all the time. He protected him when he easily broke down, and he took charge when Kaoru felt lost, and maybe part of him had really fallen in love with Hikaru just because he had been there in his bed every time he woke and fell asleep. Now, this burning jealousy, anger, and understanding, were not arisen because his brother had betrayed him…but because he had actually let himself believe that the one thing his brother couldn't live without, could be his.

Kaoru slammed his head behind him onto the stone wall causing his eyes to go black for a few minutes as he took in deep shaky breaths and slid until he was lying on the ground, tears falling down freely. He didn't want his brother to die! He couldn't live if he brother died! Kaoru winced as memories recollected in his head. When he had asked how Haruhi could tell the two apart, her reasoning had been that Hikaru was just a little bit more sadistic than Kaoru- Kaoru had laughed at the time, but not because it was true- but because of how wrong it was.

"I'm so sorry Hikaru, I didn't mean it, I didn't mean it, I take it back. I love…I love you so much…" Kaoru whispered, knowing never to jinx anything, for he ussualy got what he wished for. The boy took in shaky breaths as he rubbed his face, attempting to wipe away the tears that wouldn't stop flowing. Was something bad happening in the elevator?

As if on cue his cell phone started to vibrate in his pocket, Kaoru jumped, quickly rubbing his eyes as he cleared his voice so that the evidence of his shame was quickly hidden and he himself became composed. He answered it without even looking at the caller id, for if they knew this number, he wouldn't reject their call.

"M-mom?" Kaoru asked his voice breaking as he resisted the urge to call her mommy. He knew how much she hated that, but at his moment of self reliance and discovery her calm and nurtuiring voice was very much needed. However he knew that his mother wouldn't notice the pain in his voice, nor the silent plea for help. She merely returned the response in a unnaturally giddy tone. He could only clench his teeth as he flinched as he held back harsh sobs.

"Hi honey! Hehe sorry for bothering you so late in the night, but I wanted to ask if the date you three kids would be coming home could be moved back a bit." She cooed out, oblivious to her son's suffering on the other end.

"You see I invited those two nice girls from the Sakura family to come and have dinner with us, and I'm sure they'd be delighted to see you two again, oh you remember them don't you? They were the two you and Hikaru both fancied at that nice Birthday Party of their brothers. Did you know their turning sixteen soon? Haha isn't that a coincidence, I'm sure you'd be able to show them a good time if you both came."

Her voice was so sweet and sugar coated that Kaoru had to hold his hand over his mouth as he sobbed silently and tried his best not to look at the telephone. So it had already begun? Unlike Hikaru, Kaoru had been paying attention to what his family was hiding behind doors, and this, was one of their biggest and most potentially breaking secrets. Everyone envied the two brothers because of their freedom from Family business and political affairs, but what they couldn't see was behind their laughter and boasting, gears were being set in motion even the children themselves weren't aware of.

"I'm sorry mom I don't think-"

"But Kaoru…I'm sure that one night wouldn't hurt the both of you to do something good for your father and I would it? You can even bring lovely little Haruhi if you'd like! Wouldn't that be fun? You could dress her up and show her all the luxuries of a Upper-class lady."

Kaoru sighed as he shook, he could never win an argument with his mother. Even though she never threatened to take him out of the family, or to cut off all of his wealth, Kaoru could feel a rope tightening around him, suffocating him, forcing him with invisible bonds. Free? Kaoru could hardly count these chains as free.

"…Of course mom…I'll see you soon…" Kaoru whispered in no more than a hushed breath as he hung up the phone, dropping it to the ground. Kaoru ran his hands through his thick hair, holding back the water that brimmed at his eyes. It was silly to still be crying over these depressing thoughts, but somewhere in him, a sharp needle continued to prod and dissect his heart, causing a ripple effect that could only be shown through the tears that spilled from his eyes.

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"AH!" Haruhi dug her face into Hikaru as the lightning's flash shone through the elevator's small crack in the doors. Haruhi was breathing in small shaky pants as she held Hikaru's very cold body against her own wet clothing. Haruhi's shocked eyes and trembling limbs were not helping in the recovery of the boy, and so, with the lightning and thunder flashing so horribly at her, her mind went completely blank. She knew that staying in wet clothes in cold weather was bad, especially if you have a flu, and she also knew that searching for cell phones to call for help would be the best solution- but for some reason all of that information seemed to be stored somewhere in a locked cabinet where she could not get it.

Haruhi rocked subconsciously, Hikaru's head and torso following her own body as she moved. Shaking beyond her control Haruhi tried to take off Hikaru's baggy sweatshirt, which was holding most of the moisture. Her hands did most of the work for her without her minds attention; it almost felt like they had done this before. They slipped the blue hoodie off of the boy's long orange hair before letting it drop with a squishy plop. Haruhi then proceeded, this time with much more caution, to take off her own over shirt- thankfully it had taken most of the damage, so her white undershirt was only wet at the top fringe where lace danced across her collar bone. Hikaru's body gave off soft shivers at the sudden departure of his main article of clothing, but as his body shook warmth returned to him as Haruhi's now bare arms wrapped around him again.

"Sorry. I really didn't plan on this, I swear…" Hikaru whispered hoarsely as Haruhi blushed and patted his head to let him know to be quiet. Hikaru didn't seem to listen however as he attempted to get out of her arms, the hot red cheeks burning with heat from his fever. Haruhi watched as he struggled to properly stand, groping for the elevator's sturdy walls all the while. Haruhi's cheeks were burning with embarrassment as he stumbled and tripped, falling back onto the ground. Haruhi raised him tenderly, her bright brown eyes studying his hurt face as he bit his lip, looking away with watered eyes. Haruhi knew that he was upset, but for what, she had no idea.

"Please Haruhi, I'm tired,, and…and sick…I don't want to do something to upset you." Hikaru whispered honestly as she looked at him with sad eyes. Didn't he think that she was already upset at the fact that they were stuck in an elevator because she wanted to get something? Didn't he think, that the fact that he wanted to be with her over taking care of his health, didn't make her feel like breaking down? That was the same thing that her mother did, she just kept pushing and pushing herself until-

BAM!

Thunder roared again and tears poured out of Haruhi's eyes as she screamed and thrust herself in a ball, her body quivering. Hikaru's eyes saddened at the sight of her as he crawled to the girl, rubbing her leg to still her. Haruhi, realizing what she had done, quickly unfolded her soft and shaved legs through the elevators tiny floor space. Hikaru moved awkwardly so that he could sit beside her but Haruhi shook her head as he became dizzy again and suddenly thrust out his hands to catch himself.

"Lie down." Haruhi commanded with a firm tone. Hikaru blushed, unsure of this before she prodded him in the stomach with a finger, causing a weak laugh to escape him, and his body to fall down completely onto the floor. He had to admit, it was much nicer to be stable. Haruhi looked away from him so that only small fragments of her bangs that fell over her face were visible. Her cheeks suddenly became bright pink as she crossed her arms and flexed out her knees.

"Are you just gonna let your head sit down on that stupid dirty floor? What are you trying to get more illness' now?" Haruhi asked stubbornly. At first Hikaru didn't know what she was talking about, but after glancing at her empty lap a few times he ever so cautiously moved his head onto her leg. Seeing no reaction he moved himself onto her soft body as his eyes closed. He was now content, and only one thing could have made the situation any better.

"…are you ok?" Haruhi whispered softly. Hikaru slowly nodded, avoiding turning his head as to make sure that she was still comfortable with the situation. Haruhi let out a breath she didn't even know she was holding at those words as she leaned her head back against the elevator, her own eyes closing.

"Do you mind if I put my hands on your head? It's starting to hurt holding them up for too long." Haruhi lied. The truth was that his soft hair looked much more comfortable than sitting here awkwardly with the sick boy on her lap. His heavy breathing hit her soft thighs with ever minute that passed and the darkness only made things much worse for their situation.

"Of course not…" Hikaru whispered as she placed her silky hands upon his bushy carrot top head. Haruhi blinked, shocked that his hair was so soft. She had run her hands through it before, but the rain only made fall in such soft threads that she had to run her hands through it sixteen times just to touch every one. Hikaru was now breathing easily, which put her at more ease, though the sweat forming on his pale skin told her she wasn't out of the water yet. She needed to keep him awake. Haruhi dared to look at his face through the corner of her eyes as she noted the gray that overcame them.

"Hikaru…Hikaru?" Haruhi asked cautiously as she moved a hand and waved it in front of his face. Hikaru caught it like a fly and stared at it for a long time before giving a large, close mouthed smile and moving her hand so that it was resting against his cheek. Haruhi blushed and scrunched up her nose to wake her senses back up. Haruhi didn't mind when Hikaru or Kaoru would touch her before, so why was it every time he laid a hand on her she would instantly become a tomato?

"…Sorry…just a little while longer." Hikaru whispered as he turned his face so that his plush and surprisingly soft lips trailed over her knuckles. It felt like someone had dropped an iron down from her heart and through her as he did so.

"C-cut it out Hikaru, you're host club tricks won't work on me you know that" Haruhi protested, hoping that this would stop his actions. Hikaru merely smiled and took in a deep breath of her scent while pressing it against him, causing his lips to make more of a force on her knuckles.

"…I'd never imagine of pulling a trick on you Haruhi…" Hikaru whispered sweetly. Haruhi tried to hide her blush by sinking her head deeper into the darkness of the elevator as she tried to stop her heart from making such large beats, could he hear them as well?

"Heh jeez you're starting to loose your mind Hikaru…I saw the way you treat those girls." Haruhi defended as she attempted to tell her body to pull her hand back. It didn't listen.

Hikaru laughed as he closed his eyes peacefully now as his smile slowly faded into a content expression. He caressed her hand softly, wishing it to never go away.

"Haha well I guess being feverishly sick will do that to you! But jeez yourself Haruhi, I've never done this with any other girl I assure you Haruhi. I don't think I'd trust any other girl in the dark with my dead sexy looks and what not." Hikaru laughed out. However before even needing to see Haruhi's displeasured face, Hikaru continued, this time a bit more steadily as if he himself couldn't control, let along understand the words coming out of his mouth.

"But…I've…I've never felt this way with anyone either…it's…it's just…I want to make you smile when you're sad...but I want you to cry over me…you're someone I would die for…but someone I would live for too….someone I would strive or stand back for…before I just…I got what I wanted and hid anything else bad that I thought was going in my life…but now…I just…." Haruhi stood frozen as she felt him rub his head against her hand, now settling like a cat into a blanket as he held his hand to him. It was a new feeling, a feeling that she had never imagined having. Yet…though this feeling was new to her, her body felt calm and at peace with his actions. She rubbed her hand down his cheek, draping her fingers so that they framed his face delicately as her eyes half closed. It felt as if someone else were in her body, and Haruhi was watching from the sidelines as the girl that was supposed to be her, dipped down and kissed the top of his head.

"…thanks Hikaru…it means a lot to me…" she whispered softly.

Hikaru nodded as she pulled herself back, the room becoming comfortably quiet. Hikaru held onto her hand for some time as the thunder continue to sound through the nearly soundproof place. Each time Haruhi flinched he would squeeze her hand to let her know that he was there. Seeing that this was not doing much good Hikaru thought over what else he had brought along to calm Haruhi.

Of course!

"_Little child, be not afraid though rain pounds harshly against the glass like an unwanted stranger, there is no danger. I am here tonight_" Hikaru whispered, the soft melody only able to reach her ears by pure chance. Haruhi stopped shaking immediately at the lyrics; she stared down at Hikaru who continued to sing under his breath. Haruhi's eyes became gentle, her spirit floated in and out of her body as she noticed what a soft, suave and smooth singing voice he carried. Why hadn't she heard it more often? Haruhi's shoulders drooped as her eyes closed a bit, the sound of the rain only intensifying her drossiness.

"My mother…" Haruhi began, her relaxed body already letting her thoughts slip "…my mother used to sing me that song before I went to sleep…her voice…was very beautiful…daddy tried but he wasn't cut out for singing…" Haruhi whispered, a small smile forming on her lips. Hikaru looked up, only hushing his singing to a quiet mute as he noticed she was continuing to talk through the lightning bolts.

"…There was a thunderstorm the night my mother died…" Haruhi whispered sadly, her eyes becoming numb with pain and clouded with visions of the past as she twisted her free hand through his hair. Hikaru waited for her as she slowly continued.

"…we were making cookies…she said dad would by really happy with them…it was the first thing I had learned to cook properly and I couldn't wait to show him….I wasn't very patient back then…" She laughed softly as she wiped at her eyes "I remember I kept looking into the oven and she scolded me because it would only take longer to bake…"

Haruhi paused, grasping onto Hikaru's hair as she hesitated to continue.

"She kept telling me she couldn't wait to taste them…and I told her…that I loved her…" Haruhi whispered, small driblets bordering her lost brown orbs. Her hand shook unsteadily as she didn't even take in another breath before continuing.

"She…she was just sitting there…laughing…I didn't think anything was wrong…she…she hid it so well…sitting there…sitting there laughing with me…we…we were laughing so hard I didn't even hear the thunder…I saw lightning flash so I ran to the window…and before the thunder could even come…I…I heard a thud. I looked back behind me and saw her coughing out blood onto the floor…I didn't even register what was going on…I tried to help her, but she just collapsed onto me…I…I couldn't move…I wanted to call daddy, 911…someone to help mom" Haruhi whispered in such a soft voice Hikaru flinched as steady tears poured down as fast as the rain outside.

"but…I…I couldn't! I waited there for three hours with my mother dying on top of me! I…I felt her heartbeat…I felt her heartbeat slow…I…I felt it finally stop…and what's horrible is…I was relieved when I didn't have to hear it…dad came home and…he picked her up…and cried…I ran…and hid in the rain until I thought it was over…the doctors…they told us she must have been in horribly pain the entire time…but…but I couldn't believe them….I…I told them that we were just baking cookies…and that…she had to taste them…it wasn't that I didn't understand she was dead…I just didn't want to…I wanted to use my nativity so that I wouldn't have to cry…so I wouldn't have to remind myself of that stormy night…" Haruhi whispered as she let her tears fall onto Hikaru, not even attempting to hold them back.

"…Haruhi…" Hikaru whispered softly. He slowly lifted his head but she made him put it back down as she bent down and gave, quiet, unnoticeable sobs into his hair, hiding her face from him and the world.

"Please forgive me for this…" Haruhi whispered softly. Hikaru slowly nodded, using his other arm to rub the top of her back as she cried. She had such huge burdens on her shoulders, he could never handle living through something like that, and after such a deep connection she had towards her mother. Though Hikaru didn't understand why she chose to talk about it now, or cry in front of him, he didn't complain. He would always lend her a shoulder if she ever needed one.

"Haruhi…you know I'm always here for you right? Rain or shine…" Hikaru whispered as gently as he could. Haruhi sniffed as she rubbed her nose and eyes, feeling stupid. She gave out a soft and relieved chuckle as she awkwardly bent her head to look down at him. Hikaru, deciding to help her, turned so that he was looking up at her, putting more ease on her neck.

"Jeez you're starting to sound so cheesy" Haruhi laughed out as she rubbed at her eyes again. Without missing a beat Hikaru replied-

"Well I guess being love sick will do that to you…" Hikaru answered softly. His eyes along with Haruhi's immediately opened in shock as he felt like hitting himself in the forehead, sticking a fork in him, and laying him out to eat cause he was done! What a stupid thing to say, how did that ever slip past his lips?! Haruhi blinked, causing more tears to fall against him as she let out a shaky breath.

"…Hu-huh?" Haruhi asked gently. "I don't…think I heard you right…" Haruhi whispered. Hikaru looked at her dumbfounded as he tried to think of something as well to make up for his lack of self control. There were so many reasons that he and Haruhi couldn't get together and he had thrown them all away in a mere second because he wasn't paying attention. Of course a part of him wanted to just tell her the truth and deal with the consequences, but another, much louder part of him told him that taking Haruhi would only bring trouble.

"_Think of Kaoru!" The angel in Hikaru's mind whispered into his ear_

"_I am! As soon as he realizes that Haruhi is mine he can move on." The one defending Hikaru's normal style of thinking, the little devil, whispered into the other ear._

"_You are the big brother! You should be taking care of him! Protecting him!"_

"_By giving up the one woman that I realize I would be willing to give my life for? Which I have!"_

"_She's not the same Haruhi you dated, things won't go as smoothly"_

"_She is the same Haruhi and I don't care what you say, obstacles or not, I won't let you stand in the way of us." _

"_But what if she doesn't feel the same way?" The angel asked painfully, his face turning hopeless as he looked down at the ground, shuffling his feet._

"…_yea…what if she doesn't feel the same way…" the little devil concluded, a small sad look coming over him as well as he sighed and rubbed his temple._

"…I…I want to give us a try…we'll never know unless we try right?" Hikaru asked slowly, making sure that ever single word he uttered was oh so carefully picked out. Haruhi stared at him in shock as he mentally slammed his head against the wall again, why was he taking such stupid risk? There was no way she felt the same way, and even if she did, this was Haruhi they were talking about. It would take her weeks to finally conclude if this was the best solution and by that time Hikaru would be regretting his question so much that he would probably try and pull the entire thing off, pretending to let it be a joke.

"Haruhi I…I don't know what I'm saying, so we can just pretend that none of this ever happened if you're like." Hikaru whispered to himself as she stared out into space, apparently not even registering that he had spoken.

Haruhi continued to blink, not understanding if he really was playing a mean joke on her or not. Spots of tears fell onto his cheek as she slowly let her head fall against his own forehead. The girl didn't bother to pull her hair back this time and merely let it fall onto his chest.

"Checking my temperature?" Hikaru asked, hoping to use his fever as an excuse for his mistake.

"…take another guess…" Haruhi whispered as a few spots of tears crashed onto his cheeks. Hikaru blinked as he stared up at her sad brown gaze. Hikaru waited, waited for the elevator to suddenly move, for the lights to come on, for someone to storm in right as he touched her cheek. But no one did…

Hikaru looked around quickly, shocked by this as he thanked the heavens for his good luck. Haruhi moved her head upwards slowly, thinking that she had just as well, made a bit mistake. But before Haruhi could even get off of his skin, it was too late, his body had taken control over him as he thrust his hands to cup her face as he placed his lips passionately over her own. They felt the same, soft, warm, and all his…

They stayed there, in that position, for what seemed like an eternity, until the elevator, smoothly and unnoticeably, slid back into place at the ground.


	5. The Sadistic Sisters and Some

Authors Note: Hi everybody! Thank you once again for all of your kind words, they all help a lot! Since I live in a town where most people speak Spanish it's hard to get a good way of learning English with proper grammar and stuff, so if I make mistakes like that, I'm really sorry, but just remember I'm learning this all myself. That's why if anyone wants to help me out by being an editor that would be great, they would need to be on like everyday cause I get all nervous if it isn't back by the next day I sent it. Aw, I'm introducing the twins now cause I can. You'll just eat them up. Kukuku.

Um there is also another thing that I'd like to bring up, I'll probably be bringing up a lot of these little flashbacks, because I've made up this whole big theory and I really need to establish the relationships between the little girl and the little boy before I can actually make you guys gasp or go Aww.

By the way I'd just like to tell you that I'm listening to the step up album while writing this cause I'm very depressed (and a tad bit disappointed) after reading the Harry Potter book. Please don't discuss it in reviews for people who haven't read it, I don't mind Emails though. Anyways if you guys couldn't tell from my writing JK is like my total hero so the book was kinda a downer. Anywho that's why my writing is a little drab, so sorry!

Once again thank you everyone! Love ya!

Edit: Someone just asked me why the sudden in change in updating schedule, well for one I'm feeling better so I can write faster, second, I'll be going back to school soon so I just want to get as much as I can out on paper before that happens. However I do hope that you guys still review on each chapter, because it seems that the slower I update I get 20 reviews on one chapter, and when I update quickly I only get three. I know this sounds selfish but I use reviews as a count as to how many people are reading, so if only three people are telling me they like the story, I get discouraged and think something's wrong with my writing.

So if nothing else can you just shout out and tell me you're still reading? THANKS!

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Haruhi gave a heavy sigh as she leaned against the car window, her face forward and angry. Hikaru laughed nervously as Kaoru rubbed the back of his head, it wasn't their fault that their mother had decided to cut their vacation shot. Haruhi sighed as she looked out the window, her brown eyes full of questions. She didn't understand why it was so urgent that they got back to their home town just for Hikaru to escort some stupid girl to a stupid little ball. Of course none of this showed on her calm face as she drummed her long fingernails against the window.

"Kaoru didn't your mother tell you that she just invited the girls to dinner? So tell me again why we're all going to this huge banquet…" Haruhi whispered in an irritated tone. Kaoru sighed as he shrugged and leaned himself against his brother.

"Well you see what my mother means by dinner is a coming out into society banquet slash ball slash bore fest. She just wanted to trick me and Hikaru into escorting a few ladies to it in our free time." Kaoru added as he sighed and looked up at the top of the limo. Hikaru stared at Haruhi with guilty eyes as she sighed and looked out the window. He really had just wanted to give her a peaceful vacation, but once again he screwed everything up. Hikaru hit his forehead as he silently prayed to god that this wouldn't end up a** total** mess.

"So what are you two doing again?" Haruhi said calmly as her mind raced a thousand miles per hour. She and Hikaru had kissed, not only had they kissed, they had kissed for a long time. Hikaru for the strangest reason seemed to be happy with just pressing his lips against her, so Haruhi had to hold back her raging hormones to grab him and pull him so close he would have no choice but to take the hint. The girl hid a blush under her jacket as she took in a deep breath. God that kiss was amazing. She used to believe that her first kiss would be with Tamaki, but now, after it was done with, Haruhi couldn't have seen it happening any other way.

She loved them both, but it was almost impossible to explain the type of love she held for the both of them. As Hikaru and Kaoru tried to think of a proper way to tell her what their mother was up to, her mind wandered. Yes, comparing their love, was like…comparing a dog and a cat.

A mental image of a Tamaki puppy and a Hikaru kitten popped in her head without warning. The dog sat dumbly, his long blonde fur flying as he hopped up and down, looking cute while the cat rolled his eyes and licked his orange paw elegantly. Haruhi giggled inside her head, but continued with her comparison.

Haruhi loved the dog because of its loyalty, kindness, and carefree nature but his lack of seriousness was both a good and bad thing for her. She needed someone who would know when to cheer her up, and when it was just annoying. She loved the cat for his sleek and sneaky composure, his fine taste and mischievous glare but she hated his tendency to pounce at any other animal that stood in his way. She had a life, and she needed them to understand that just because she cared for others didn't mean she didn't love them just as much.

"Well…we're going back home to escort a few ladies around" Hikaru said tenderly, his face blushing at his own words.

The dog loved and accepted everyone, which in most cases was a good trait. The cat locks onto one person and one person only, not showing any interest in sharing his love with any other people, and although the dogs love was pure, the cat was much lonelier and in need of someone to hold onto…

Haruhi wasn't stupid, she knew her feelings for the two boys way before she had kissed Hikaru, but she wasn't willing to admit it until she had chosen one of them, she didn't want to hurt the others feelings by making them feel they had a chance. But in one moment, those feelings were overwhelmed as Hikaru's lonely nature finally became clear to her. She wanted to be the one and the only one that he loved, whether that was selfish or not, she didn't care. Haruhi closed her eyes, her mind dreaming back to that kiss, it was so warm and much slower and simpler than she had imagined. Of course, when the door to the elevator opened Haruhi had pretended nothing had happened as did Hikaru, and they both went and bought the piece of clothing that she had originally intended to get (by taking the stairs of course). They both knew that this major change would be bad to do over night, and so they had to take it slow, especially with Kaoru.

"Haruhi?" Hikaru and Kaoru asked as she dozed off, thinking of slow transitions to show the others that they had decided to give each other a shot. Tamaki would flip, Honey would do back flips, Mori would most likely pat them on the head, and Kyouya would probably just smirk that stupid smirk of his. It wasn't like these were the things that they feared, it was Kaoru's reaction. Though words were never spoken on the matter Haruhi assumed both she had Hikaru knew of Kaoru's feelings for her, towards them in general.

Yes, it was fairly obvious that they would need to take things very slowly.

"Yea?" Haruhi asked calmly. Hikaru merely smiled at her forcing her to hold back a giddy open mouthed smile in return. Damn it Hikaru, why couldn't you make it easy on her? Couldn't he wait until Kaoru was at least out of sight?

"Did you hear us?" Kaoru asked gently. Haruhi gave him a sweet smile, making him blink at the unusual return as she laughed and rubbed the back of her head as she whispered a small yes. The girl looked back up and blinked as she looked from Kaoru to Hikaru.

"I still don't understand why you have to escort them…you guys aren't engaged are you?" Haruhi asked calmly. She knew that Tamaki's 'assignment' with Éclair had only led to a fight for Tamaki's freedom; the last thing she wanted was a replay of that episode. Both Hikaru and Kaoru laughed at the same moment as they leaned against the car's seat. Kaoru was the first to answer.

"Aw no Haruhi, our mother would never do anything like that. The two of us escorting them is just like another assignment in the host club. " Kaoru answered simply. Haruhi still looked a bit confused, after all life and the host club were two very different things weren't they? Hikaru gave her a small smile as he continued with the explanation.

"You see long before we were in the Host club our mother has used our looks for her business. When we were children she would use us to model her lines, and when we became popular with women she assigned us to escort designers' daughters to swoon them into joining our fashion line. It used to bother us because every time that they came home we wouldn't get to see them for weeks at a time due to escorting, and when we were finished we would only be given another job. But…we just stopped caring after a while. We are supposed to give them whatever they want to make sure that we get their business and support, but it usually doesn't take much." Hikaru stated in a bored voice as he leaned back once more. Haruhi blinked as the next statement flew out of her mouth-

"You guys make it sound like your mothers using you guys like tools" Haruhi laughed out. To her surprise Hikaru and Kaoru both froze, their sweet and calm eyes slipping into shocked ones. Haruhi stopped laughing, her eyes becoming sad as Kaoru dropped his eyes and turned, ignoring the others. Hikaru hid his shock as he gave a soft scoff and closed his eyes half way, feeling his lids becoming droopy as anger crossed his sweet face.

"Heh. That's a good word for it Haruhi. We've been trying to think of one for years now. Ha-ha yep! That's what we are, tools." He said with a wide grin as the look of anger disappeared from his face. Haruhi stared at him with an open mouth as she glanced at the still numb Kaoru, had she accidentally hit a nerve? Hikaru laughed heartily as he put a strong hand on her shoulder, flashing a grin as he held onto her shoulder for a second.

"But let's not worry about that! She invited you as well, just have fun ok? I'll make sure mommy dearest takes care of you." Hikaru added sweetly. Haruhi suddenly became scared as he talked, how long was he going to be gone?

"You mean that you won't be with me?" Haruhi asked gently. Hikaru blushed at her pathetic voice and face as she let her shoulders slump. She didn't want to be left alone at a party with people she didn't know, especially with rich bastards. Haruhi looked down at herself, jeans and a damp t-shirt. They had left from the elevator after making sure that Hikaru would be ok for one more night without medication. Of course Haruhi wasn't happy about his decision seeing as how he had fainted only a few hours ago, but he assured her that as soon as they got home he would take care of himself.

"Do you really expect me to go in there and embarrass myself alone?!" Haruhi asked, her eyes wide and pleading. She didn't worry about clothes before, seeing as how Hikaru and Kaoru were dressed in nearly the same thing state, but now that they wouldn't be with her she was suddenly conscious of her looks. Hikaru blinked, as if not expecting those words to come out of Haruhi's lips. He laughed and stretched his arms lazily as he pondered her thoughts.

"You didn't think we wouldn't let you show yourself off tonight did you? Don't worry about it Haruhi, we've already arranged for some maids to have something for you. You already stand out enough as it is, we will just make sure you stand out in a good way." Hikaru stated simply.

"Now I advise you get some sleep, it's gonna be a long drive." Hikaru mumbled as he closed his eyes. Haruhi smiled very softly and nodded a bit before looking towards Kaoru who still hadn't said a word. Haruhi slid to his side and placed her head on his shoulder gently, her own eyes seeming to soak up his pain. Kaoru blinked blushing awkwardly as he looked down at her. Haruhi didn't look up but kept her head against him as she let out a soft sigh.

"…H-Haruhi?" He whispered softly as to not wake his brother. Haruhi didn't say a word but reached out and grabbed his hand in her own, giving it a comfortable squeeze. Kaoru looked down at their hands, holding in his confusion. This was a different air that she usually carried around her, it was far more relaxed, understanding…

Even if her intentions weren't romantic, it was calming. The boy let out a heavy sigh as he leaned his head on top of hers. Haruhi had once again worked her magic. Even though the actions might have seemed romantic, he knew the true meaning of them was to make the hurt expression of his disappear. Kaoru sighed once more and gripped her hand tightly as he closed his eyes. He wanted to apologize to her. He wanted to let her know that he really did support the two, but he couldn't bring words out.

However he could not fight the feeling of sleep as he nestled his head into her hair and listened to her even breathing. She was dreaming of something peaceful…he was glad.

"_Hehe. You're funny!" The little girl called out as she followed the boy who had saved her from the bullies only a moment before. The boy turned his hair on end and his face filled with anger. His cheeks puffed out as he pushed her down to the ground with little strength, a hot blush fresh on his cheeks. The girl blinked as she mumbled under her breath and picked her body up, rubbing her sore bottom as she once again started after him. The boy, surprised, started in a run, shock covering him. Why was this girl still following him?!_

_There was no denying she was cute, with long and neatly cut brown hair and big almond eyes, however she was a commoner, and wasn't worth his time. The boy ran as fast as he could, utterly stunned that she was catching up with him in such a long and stiff dress. The girl fell, scraping her knees with dirt before letting out a yell of pain and wiping at her eyes as a small trickle of blood dripped down her shin. The boy giggled happily at seeing her pain before starting in a run again. _

"_W-wait." The girl hiccupped out. The boy stopped, and turned, still not feeling guilty for her fall. The girl cried softly, rubbing her eyes as her hands trailed her somewhat bruised face. Even though the boys had not done it personally, the rocks that they had thrown left marks on her even skin. The boy walked back to her until he was staring down at her pathetic face with hateful eyes. The girl sobbed softly, keeping her pain to herself as she reached out her hand. The boy smacked it away angrily, making her flinch. _

"_You think that just because you cry someone will pay attention to you?" He asked sadistically. He laughed cruelly, letting her tears fall at a faster rate as she shrunk her hand back. He was angry, really angry. She had never seen a person this way before, everyone always surrounded her with smiles and laughs; no one had ever glared at her like this. _

"_You think that crying will get you what you want? That mommy will come jumping to your rescue? It's pathetic. I hate kids like you. Kids who think that mommy and daddy are everything in the world and that just sitting on your butt will get you where you wanna be! I HATE PEOPLE LIKE YOU!" The boy yelled angrily. The girl flinched at every word, tears slowly hitting the ground. She dared to look back up at his eyes, which held a fire of hate swirling in her direction. But…they also held pain, even deeper pain than he let on. The little girl reached out her hand again, this time not for help, but to touch him. The little boy noticed the difference in her actions immediately, his eyes widened as he slapped her straight across the face, seeming to be frightened of touch. _

"_D-don't touch me," He whispered angrily "I-I don't want damn commoner germs on me…o-only one persons allowed to console me and you aren't him!" _

_The little girl sat content as she stared up at him sadly, even though he didn't mean to, he had let on more than he planned. The girl felt her eyes water again, but not at the pain of her wound or the sharp sting of the red mark across her face, buts he suddenly felt pity for him. _

"…_Your parents can't even hold you? …don't you love your parents?" The little girl asked softly. The boy stood, frozen in the grass as he started to shake. Tears rimmed at his beautiful eyes as he suddenly shook his head, his hair falling in all directions as he threw out his hand. _

"_That's none of your business! A commoner like you wouldn't know what being a child only born for convenience is like! Your parents probably love you and wanted to have you! You have no idea! You'll never know the pain that I feel knowing I was only born because it would make my parents work easier!" He yelled, only a few droplets of fresh tears falling from his eyes. The little girl pulled her knees up to her torso before wrapping her arms around her ankles casually. The boy stared down at her as his tears hit her dirty shoes. He slowly wiped the tear away with his finger and stared down at the water; that had never happened before…_

"_Yea…I guess you're right…my parents love me a whole lot and I'm pretty sure that I would never be able to imagine what you go through. But I know a secret to making those little drips of water go away." The girl laughed, giving a very sweet smile as her pretty eyes closed. The boy wiped at his eyes again, feeling them coming faster than before. _

"_Hurry before my brother comes! Tell me the secret!" He yelled angrily. The girl giggled, pointing a spot in front of her. He growled and sat down, crossing his legs Indian style as she slowly opened her eyes into small slits, the beautiful shy smile still curved on her face._

"_Here- closer." She whispered. He rolled his eyes and put his head in closer so that he could hear what she had to say. Just as his nose touched hers the girl jetted forward and pecked him on the lips before drawing back with such speed 'The Flash' would have been given a ride for his money. She giggled as the boy put a finger on his lip tenderly, that was such a warm feeling. The girl laughed again and rubbed his hair quickly before standing up and taking his hand. _

"_See no more tears!" The girl laughed out. He could only nod dumbly as she chuckled and skipped forward, tugging him behind her. He stared at her with a dumb look of shock as she giggled again and looked back, tilting her head sweetly for him as he stood his ground, making her stop running. _

"_What was that for?" He asked slowly, blinking innocently and actually looking his age for the first time since she had met him. The girl merely laughed and squeezed his tiny hand in her own tighter as she let her hair fall around her. _

"_It's cause I like you silly, hehe and cause you're my friend! And Daddy said that's what friends do!" The girl chimed out. She laughed again as she turned to face him, her other hand reaching out and taking his as she held onto them tightly._

"_We'll be good friends k?!" She asked, her giddy smile flashing at him as he blinked, completely dumbstruck by her cute and kind exterior. He slowly nodded, his eyes becoming much gentler as she laughed again and stood with him, warm hands still holding his cold ones._

"_Alright! I'll be back tomorrow ok? We'll go and play in the park together! I'll meet you at the pond!" The girl giggled out, he continued to slowly nod as she nodded quickly and let go of his hands, causing him to snap back to reality. _

"_Wa-wait! No we can't be friends! HOLD ON A MINUTE! ARE YOU EVEN LISTENING TO ME YOU STUPID LITTLE COMMONER?!" _

"My lady Haruhi, please wake up…" A soft voice whispered into Haruhi's ear as she turned on her side, feeling a familiar and comforting warmth fill up in her body at the thought of her old friend. It had been a while since she had consciously dreamt of him. Haruhi mumbled under her breath as she turned again at feeling soft hands on her shoulders, she didn't want to wake up. The girl let out a soft cough as she slowly sat up at hearing words being breathed into her ear with the utmost caution.

"..huh?" Haruhi mumbled as she rubbed her eyes. In front of her stood a lovely looking maid, her hair pulled up in a high ponytail as she smiled happily at Haruhi before putting out her hand to help her out of bed.

"Oh I'm so sorry; I didn't know I was so tired." Haruhi whispered, realizing that the maid probably had to resist the urge to throw water over her head to wake her. Haruhi rubbed her eyes and looked down at her bed as the maid placed a simple, yet elegant blue dress down on the bed. Haruhi whispered something about rich bastards before allowing the maid to examine her body and hair. The maid was obviously looking for some good traits in her, but Haruhi doubted she'd see any.

"My my, this dress is much too small for your chest and hips. I don't know what those boys were thinking, you're not a stick." The maid whispered as she held the dress up and looked back at Haruhi. It was true, the dress was beautiful, but the boys had apparently not noticed her body changed underneath her heavy and baggy clothes.

"Well Master Hikaru and Kaoru are usually not wrong about these things, but it's good that I keep spares on hand right?" The girl asked classily. Haruhi slowly nodded as she opened up the closet to the large room. She pulled out a white dress strapless dress. It was very simple, but looked like something out of a Cinderella fairy tale to Haruhi. Unlike the other dress it's torso was made up of stiff material that created the illusion of extreme curves by letting everything past the hip glow out in soft layers like a ball gown. Haruhi suddenly gulped.

"M-mam. There's no way that I can give that dress justice. That can't be the dress for me…" Haruhi said as she took in a shaky breath. She was scrawny, had chicken legs, and a little chest, this dress was built for someone with a good figure. Not for someone like her. The maid smiled as she looked down at it. The beads, which are first glance were just glitter, shining against the white cloth, were arranged in a tiny pattern that hugged at the top of the dress, creating a flower pattern of beads in the lace.

"Do you like it?" She asked kindly. Haruhi reluctantly nodded, she would never get the chance to wear such fine material again, and like a forbidden fruit, it pulled her in. She was curious, she wanted to know if these rich and designer clothes really could work magic on her like she always imagined it could. Who cares if Hikaru wasn't able to see her, she wanted to be a princess for a little while damn it!

"…Yes…yes I like it very much…"

"Well then it's the dress for you. Now, put on something you're willing to get dirty and come with me, I'll do your make up and hair." The maid added gently. Haruhi slowly nodded as she scrunched up the back of her hair causing it to fall in small ripples. Maybe this wouldn't be so bad?

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"Introducing Lady Haley and Hannah and Their Escorts Masters Kaoru and Hikaru" A loud voice called out from the top of the stairs. Hikaru and Kaoru were dressed at their finest, their normal happy smiles were replaced by handsome seriousness as the girls at their sides dipped their heads elegantly to acknowledge a welcome to everyone. They were rather beautiful women with eyes of a deep blue and silky looking blonde hair. They were both dressed in matching outfits of blue that complimented Hikaru and Kaoru's matching white tuxedo suits. Everyone turned their heads and slowed their dances to look at them. The two twin daughters of the main cloth industry and the two twin sons of the best fashion line in Japan, it truly was a beautiful sight.

From behind them Haruhi grumbled, she wasn't allowed to be seen with them, she had been informed, and so sticking behind the wall while she tried to push down her heeber jeebers was the best that she could do. Proper ladies were supposed to be shown around by escorts right? That's why the beautiful and elegant ladies all had men smiling by their sides and all of the other women were serving food. Haruhi moaned to herself, it wasn't like she could just ask some random man to walk her down the stairs and if she walked down herself she would cause too much attention.

"Haruhi is that you?" A smooth voice asked. Haruhi turned around quickly at hearing her name, it was surprising enough to even hear someone who knew her name, but it was especially hard for her to believe that it had in fact, been a male calling her name.

"Eh..eh…eh…y-you…" Haruhi whimpered out as the man smiled and walked to her side. He looked around slowly, making her freeze in her spot as he looked at her once again. The girl sighed, of course, if anyone she would have to run into this wolf.

"Did the twins leave you by yourself?" He asked lowly. Haruhi sighed and shook her head no before explaining that they were 'escorting' a few ladies around the premises. He only nodded at this and looked down at her, his lips curling into a disapproving frown. Haruhi blushed, placing her eye brows together as she pouted, knowing that look. That was the Oh-god-what-where-they-thinking-with-you look. Haruhi hid a low growl as the man rubbed his temple.

"Well I can't just leave you here to make a fool of yourself I suppose...I gather you've never been to a formal event of this stature before?" He said softly and with a hint of sadistic nature. Haruhi laughed through gritted teeth as she shook her head. The man stood behind her and pushed at her back with his large palm so she was standing as straight as a board.

"Pretend you're wearing a Kimono in a tea ceremony. Carry an aura of elegance around you, for goodness sake's you're a proper lady. Un-grit your teeth and smile like you belong here. Keep your head held high and act like you own the place or else you'll be chewed up and spit out before you even had a chance to reach the bottom of the steps. Place your arm into mine and for goodness sake act like you weren't tottaly forced into this." The man echoed out numbly. Haruhi twitched angrily as he made her stand in proper poise, and wouldn't even push herself to admit that he was right.

"Oh and by the way Haruhi," he started. Haruhi clenched her teeth unwillingly as she imagined stabbing him over and over again her head. To her surprise however and ever so small smile graced his lips "…you look wonderful."

Haruhi looked back at him right as they got on the top step, a small blush on her cheek. She smiled happily and mouthed him a thank you. She giggled inside her head, even if it wasn't Hikaru giving her the compliment; it still seemed like a major accomplishment, especially for her.

"Introducing, Lady Haruhi, and Master Kyouya…." The two headed down the stairs gracefully without many eyes on them, but that was just fine with Haruhi. She could spot Kaoru and Hikaru with the two other girls off in the corner, but she tried not to focus on that fact for to long. Kyouya and Haruhi reached the bottom step before he slowly let her arm fall out of his own. Haruhi looked back at him before looking around, not seeing why he would be at such an event.

"That reminds me Kyouya. Why are you here?" She asked, tilting her head a bit. The man smiled innocently before brushing her question off and picking another topic of discussion. He sat her down at the table and discussed the most intellectually random things she could think of- though it wasn't really a bad conversation par say. Her lips moved on their own creating a conversation ranging from the Ouran High faults to Global warming and politics. She swore she even heard him laugh at a few of her jokes. Maybe Kyouya wasn't so bad; after all, taking her from this horribly dull party was a thing that a good guy does right? However she failed to notice the pair of eyes glaring at them from the other side of the room.

"Would you care for this dance **Lady **Haruhi?" Kyouya teased as he placed out his hand. Haruhi stared, now knowing that he was up to something. Had Tamaki put him up to this? Or had the twins bribed him off? Nonetheless she didn't mind placing her gentle palm against his own as he swept her across the dance floor in one smooth motion. Haruhi smiled brightly as he twirled her underneath his long arms before pulling her in and letting her go. At first she stumbled about awkwardly, having only learned the dance steps for the male lead in the Host club, but she soon found her balance and adjusted to the female follower.

"Hikaru called me and told me tonight would be awkward for you…." Kyouya whispered to her. Haruhi's eyes widened as she felt anger tear up inside of her. So Kyouya had been bribed to do this? But, the anger sizzled away as she rationalized that he wouldn't have had to do it if he didn't want to, and the gesture from both Hikaru and Kyouya was rather sweet. She slowly nodded as he made a brisk turn so that they were in clear view of the twins.

"He also told me that the hospital charged you a rather outrageous bill for your stay. I assure you that this has been taken care of..." Kyouya answered as calmly as possibly without sounding smug. Haruhi's eyes widened as Kyouya smiled at her, his dark glasses hiding the real look in his eye.

Hikaru attempted to crush the glass that he was holding as Hannah, his lady for the evening, laughed and sat next to him, trying to grab his attention back to her. Hikaru was fuming; as soon as he had gotten Haruhi back Kyouya was trying to steal her away. Hikaru had asked that he be a friend to her tonight, not a perfect date! Hell if he wanted that he would have just called Tamaki, at least then it was assured that Haruhi would be able to see his flaws within the first two minutes.

"Re-really? I mean…thank you Kyouya…that's very kind of you…I don't have to work it off do I?" Haruhi asked in a low voice. Kyouya laughed softly under his breath as he pulled her in close so that their torsos were pierced against one another's. Haruhi let out a taken breath as he dipped her so low that her head was dangerously close to the floor.

Hikaru spit out his water as he saw Kyouya's head dip down next to Haruhi's. Flames erupted as he ditched Hannah, who was desperately trying to cling onto his tuxedo, and stormed over to the two as quickly and quietly as he could.

"Of course not." He whispered near her ear "Just take care of my sons." Kyouya whispered, pushing her back up within a second. Haruhi held her head, suddenly feeling dizzy as Hikaru suddenly punched Kyouya's arm.

"May I cut in Mom?" He asked angrily, his shoulders shaking with a vengeance. He was willing to try and cut down on his jealousy for Haruhi's sake, but he already had a few fights to pick with Kyouya, he didn't need another one. Kyouya merely nodded, and left with a simple whisper in Hikaru's ear that Haruhi didn't catch.

"Don't drag her into this unless you plan on protecting her idiot…"

Hikaru scrunched up his nose, not understanding nor paying mind to Kyouya's words before smiling gently at Haruhi and holding out his hand. Haruhi hesitated, thinking of only Karou's feelings, and what everyone else would say if they saw her dancing with him. But no eyes were on the two, and even though Haruhi thought it was impossible, the two of them blended into the crowd rather beautiful. Haruhi smiled and clasped his hand in her own before letting him lead the dance.

Hikaru smiled happily, placing her hand to his mouth as he kissed her fingertips gently. This hand that he loved so much, it felt so right to have it back in his possession….

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"Ah Hikaru we've been dancing for to long, you need to get back to your girls" Haruhi told him simply as he moaned and put his head on top of hers. He didn't want to leave. Haruhi sent him a warning glare before pulling herself away without too much resistance from him. He knew she was right, but he didn't want to admit it.

"I'll go out to the garden ok? Once you can break away I'll meet you out there." Haruhi said with a simple nod. Hikaru sighed and watched her as she laughed and headed out the large glass doors. Hikaru smiled and walked slowly back to the table where the girls would be waiting for him. His eyes caught sight of two large blue dresses heading out the glass doors, and a funny pain stuck him in the heart, but he ignored it and sat down next to Kaoru.

"Hey Hikaru you finally back?" Kaoru asked as his big brother sat down beside him. Hikaru merely nodded before looking in all directions noticing that tow very beautiful girls had disappeared.

"Kaoru where are Hannah and Haley?" He asked blindly as he continued to look under the chairs and across the crowd for them. Kaoru simply shrugged his shoulders before leaning back into the expensive chair.

"They said something about needing to go to the powder room, don't worry about it they'll be back in a moment…" Through the crowd a woman with piercing cat eyes headed toward her boys as she laughed and got in front of the two after pushing her way from everyone.

"Hi guys, so, what did you think of Hannah and Haley? Their lovely little girls aren't they?" Their mother cooed out, once again going into the future, her eyes sparkling bright as she awaited her boys answer. Truthfully Hikaru and Kaoru thought they were dead boring, just like a couple of fan girls who had just gotten their dream wish come true. Hikaru sighed as he rested his head against his wrist.

"Sorry mom, I can't answer truthfully since I'm pretty sure it would make you cry, and I'd be a little bias since I already have a girl who I should have escorted in the first place…" Hikaru whispered to himself. Kaoru glanced over at him softly.

"Haruhi?"

"We were going to try and break the news to everyone gently since it's a trial and error thing, but yea…I wanted you to hear it from me anyways…"

"I'm not sure if this is the best way to verbalize it but thanks…" Kaoru whispered. The twins both looked back at their mother as she laughed nervously. Kaoru raised a brow at her, feeling suddenly very aware of his surroundings.

"…You…and Haruhi? You actually got together…ha-ha…oops…mommy made a boo-boo. Have a good night boys!" Their mother yelled, skipping off and away into the sea of dancing couples.

"Kaoru would it be saying I worry too much if I told you I had a bad feeling…"

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"Hehehe you ducky's' are so cute." Haruhi whispered as she sat by the pond, careful not to mess up her white dress as she looked at all of the ducks paddle and surround her when she tossed some of the bread she had taken from inside at the water. They quickly dove for it and all too happily thanked her with a satisfied quack. But her peace didn't last for long, a shiver ran down her back as she rubbed her arm, a hateful gaze was upon her.

"Servant as cute as it is seeing you feed these ducklings don't you think you'd be more suited for wiping the burnt crust off of the burners in the kitchen?" A cold voice called out. Haruhi didn't move from her spot and merely ignored the verbal insult.

"Oh no don't even mention that sister. She might try and eat the burnt tuna…we wouldn't want such good food wasted on _that_…" The voices sounded the same, but Haruhi knew without even looking around that they belonged to two different people, two identical people.

"Well I do like Tuna." Haruhi commented as she threw another piece gently out into the pond. She smirked to herself before feeling the back of her dress being pulled. Haruhi rose quickly at the sudden force and turned around as the two twins, both seeming beautiful, edged toward her.

"So I see you know my Hikaru?" One asked, her eyes darting dangerously toward Haruhi's feet. Haruhi took a ginger step back, a small, forced smile still on her face. What were these girls trying to get to? She laughed softly and nodded.

"Yes he's in my classes." Haruhi answered. The girl shook with anger and Haruhi could see it.

"You'd better stay away from him. You don't deserve him…you can't have him…" She threatened. This hit a nerve in Haruhi, verbal stuff she could handle, being pushed around was annoying, but not enough to set apart her temper; but being told no, that she couldn't have something? That didn't sit to well with her…

"…I can do whatever I want. Hikaru's my friend; he's only your escort for one night. I'll be standing by his side tomorrow and the next day long after you are holding onto your treasured memories." Haruhi replied smoothly. A nerve went off in the girl's head as she pushed Haruhi into the pond, soaking her from head to toe. Haruhi let out a cough as the cold chilled her already ill bones.

"…how does that feel?" She asked sadistically.

"….water can't hurt handsome men…" Haruhi whispered with a cruel smile, and with that, the hunt was on.

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"You think you belong here?! You think that just because you think you're close to those two you are allowed to be friends, or dare I say it lovers?" Another slap was thrown across the pale girls face as she sat in place, held down by one and being ridiculed by the other. How long had they been out here? Thirty minutes? An hour? At first Haruhi had just come out to see the pond, but she had been caught by the two seemingly harmless jealous sisters. Of course Haruhi had made a run for it, but heels and her didn't get along very well, and after some ineffective verbal beating they had resorted to hitting her in an attempt to make her beg for their forgiveness.

"It's funny…you say that to me…but you can't even tell which of those boys your escort is for the night…" Haruhi whispered, a smile plastered on her lips as she looked up at the enraged woman.

"Don't talk to me like that you useless little pig." Hannah muttered, her angry face being replaced by that of a numb and sadistic whench. She grabbed Haruhi's hair and dunked it into the pond, holding her down until she was sure the girl was suffering. Haruhi held her breath as long as possible, unable to struggle due to the other girl holding her legs and arms. Haruhi suddenly let out an air bubble as she choked on the water underneath her. Hannah pulled her back quickly causing Haruhi to let out an involuntary yell.

Hannah smiled cruelly as she held Haruhi's head back by the hair in one hand, the other picking up her right hand and examining it. Haruhi took in deep breaths, trying to regain what she had lost as the twins giggled. Hannah slowly started to bend Haruhi's fingers back, making her have to bite her lip out of sheer pain.

"Hikaru seemed so fascinated about your hands…I wonder if he'll still look at them the same after being bashed in." The girl whispered happily. Haruhi's eyes shot open out of fear as the other twin, Haley, pushed her down so she was bending over her knees, unable to move. Hannah threw Haruhi's hand down on the ground and looked around for something to hit it with. She laughed and took off her shoe, holding it above Haruhi's hand.

"Ready Sis? Hold her down good."

Tears glided down her cheeks from pain as a high heeled foot dug into her back, and it was at that moment that Haruhi wished for nothing more than Hikaru to magically come in and see the hurt she was in. She wanted someone to come in and stop these two, but even the maids passed by with hushed glances.

She wanted help.

But help wasn't coming…


	6. The Blessing Of Understanding

Authors Note: I'm so sorry everybody! Oh my gosh I was really trying so hard just to get this chapter out of me but I can't focus unless I have the right music for it, and I could not for the life of me find the song I wanted. (I eventually found my groove in Paperback Writer by the Beatles)

I'm also sorry that a lot of you have problems with torture, if I had known I would have toned it down before I got them to that mean of a level. If you really have trouble stomaching it I've made it so that you can just read what's in the quotes to get you to where Haruhi's in nice safe arms. However I will probably not stop that type of writing style just because it's a big part of the story.

Oh and a bit of a problem. Supporters of this couple usually aren't in it for the innocent cute love like Haruhi and Tamaki, so more intimate scenes or do you all just want to stick to cute fluffy moments? Cause I have no problem with writing emotional scenes like that, but I don't want to offend anyone.

I also ran into another problem, I was wondering what you guys want me to do about it, because I re-discovered my absolute HATE for writing clothing descriptions. I've found that I can do them since I obviously see the dress in my head, but it's just a long paragraph of boring details and no matter what even if I describe it perfectly everyone's going to imagine it differently. So I think I'm just gonna stick to the really basic, vague, imagery of it and let you guys imagine the rest on your own. That cool or do you want me to try and do another method?

Anyways here's the next chapter. Enjoy loves.

(Ps: Izzy loves fan-art. It's scientifically proven she writes better when given pretty shiny drawings. That is all.

PSS: Most of the dialogue from this chapter came from some choice moments in my life so if anything sounds really cheesy it's cause well…it's me and my husband XD What do you expect?)

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"_No, no Mr. Ducky! Please wait your turn!" The little girl's voice chimed out happily as she giggled and threw a piece of bread into the pond. The little girl could only laugh as they all dived in after it at the same time, conking heads every so often. The mother duckling swam around gently, not worrying about her children with the girl since she had recognized her as a friend and not an enemy. Ever since that faithful day in the park when she had been saved by that hot headed boy, she had come to the playing field and escaped to the safest part near the pond to feed the ducks. _

_Of course she had not gone without company. _

"_Haruhi! You started feeding them without me?!" A whiney voice called out as the boy ran to her side. Haruhi giggled and tossed in another crumb for the ducklings as he pouted and took his seat beside her. Haruhi giggled happily and tore her bread in half before handing the other half to him. He nodded a thank you and took a moment to go and glance at the ducklings. Many days had passed since he had looked down at her, and many days had passed since he had thrown rocks at her. _

_With her bright smile and carefully chosen words, he had nearly felt the ice built up around his heart melt away. _

_Now if only he could just let his brother see that in her…_

_The boy sighed and held out his hand with some bread making the ducks' heads rise. They started over to him but he pulled his hand away, scanning for an unnaturally small creature among them._

"_Huh?! Wh-Where's Nacho?!" The boy asked quickly, fear springing in his voice. Haruhi laughed and tilted her head at him cutely as her hair fell over her face. _

"_He's fine. He's just exploring the rest of the pond" Haruhi whispered. A tight knot in his chest was loosened as he heard that the duckling was ok. For some reason he had grown quite fond of the one that he had named 'Nacho' because of his small exterior and runt like status in the family. It was nostalgic to his own home to say the least. _

"_He's never traveled around the pond before though…what if he gets's lost and can't find his way back?" The boy whispered, his eyes half closing as worry once again came over him. Since many of the other ducklings fought for the food that they tossed to them, Nacho, being the smallest and weakest, usually never got any, so the boy, being a somewhat kind soul, would hand feed him. Now that Nacho was missing though…._

"_Here-" Haruhi said kindly as she took his bread and tore off a good helping. "-feed the rest of the ducks and when Nacho comes back you can give him this part k?" She smiled as he slowly nodded and threw some more of the bread into the water. He opened his mouth to complain but Haruhi merely chuckled and ran her hand through his hair quickly. He nearly melted as he closed his eyes, his uptight shoulders slowly sinking as he laughed as well. _

"_I tried that on my brother yesterday! I'm not as good as you are, but he looked like a kitty being petted, it was pretty funny!" He laughed out._

"_Hey, when do I get to meet your brother anyways? You're always talking about him but…" She trailed off and moved her eyes over to him without moving her body as she continued to toss food into the pond. The boy was staring at his reflection sadly making Haruhi too sober up as she threw the food a little farther. _

"_Sorry…" Haruhi whispered as she put her head on her knees "…it just feels like you're ashamed of having me as a friend."_

_The boy sighed as he looked away once more only to see a tiny yellow duckling struggling to get over to the shore with its brother's and sisters. Nacho. Using this new distraction, and after feeling a sigh of relief escape him the boy put out his hand, the duck happily chomping up the bread out of his palm. _

"_It's not that I'm ashamed of you…I'm just…scared…" he whispered softly. Haruhi looked at him and petted his head gently. He smiled and leaned against her hand happily. Why couldn't his mother ever treat him like this when he was sad? _

"…_we've never had a friend before…maybe…I'll tell him when he'll be able to understand." He whispered gently._

_She sighed heavily making him flinch. He didn't want her to be sad. He stared at the girl as she tugged her lips up in a sympathetic smile. How many times did he have to sit next to this hyper child before he could stop laughing at her and laugh with her? So many times she had to sneak past the richer kids just to get here unscathed. _

"…_sorry…Haruhi…" he whispered sadly. _

"…_Hehe it's ok! I'll always be there for you!"_

It hurt. Everything hurt. Her hand was throbbing out heat as it stung with such a harsh pain Haruhi had to take in deep breaths as the girl stared angrily down at her. Hannah growled as she looked down at Haruhi's hand. It was red and bruised, but no bones were broken. Fortunately for Haruhi Hannah was mean, but she was weak, even though she had thrashed the heel of her shoe on her hand, she had not been able to succeed in breaking her. Haruhi clenched her teeth together as the other sister dug her shoe deeper into her back as Hannah attempted to retaliate herself.

"Those twins are mine! Who do you think you are taking them?!" Hannah asked raising her hand to slap her again. Haruhi did not flinch and stuck her head out, as if daring her to hit her again. Hannah's face turned red as she backhanded her across the cheek, leaving a fresh red mark.

"Ha-ha! Is that all you have? My grandmother hit's harder!" Haruhi yelled happily. It hurt now, but in the end she knew Hikaru and Kaoru would never turn their back on her, and with some luck, Hannah and Haley might be the ones in the most pain. Hannah twitched angrily as Haley tilted her head to the side looking curious as she leaned down and whispered nearly innocently-

"You're grandmother hits people?" Her bright blue eyes showed no sign of hate like Hannah's did, and her dumb expression showed that she obviously wasn't the smartest of the bunch. Haruhi stared, shocked at her. How could this girl act like such a saint when she was causing her such pain?

"...Yea actually. You see she carries around a cane all the time and she randomly hits youngsters on the street…she's kind of mentally ill and what not, but at least she doesn't need to resort to jumping a person to get what she wants" Haruhi whispered with a rebelling smirk. Hannah fumed. Haley laughed slightly and rubbed the back of her head before leaning back up and looking at her older sister.

"Don't worry Hannah; she's got a cane, that's probably why you can't hit as hard as her." Haley chimed out sweetly. Hannah rubbed her temple as she grabbed her sister's shoulder and shoved her so that she was once again focusing on her duty to hold Haruhi down.

"Pft…I still don't see what the twins see in you." Hannah whispered as she looked Haruhi's body over, giving a disgusting scoff as she turned away. Haruhi bit her lip out of anger but calmed as Hannah turned back.

"Small chest. Ugly face. Annoying voice. No sexual attractiveness at all, surely making them love me more than you won't be too hard." Hannah whispered. Haruhi raised a brow, did she really think that insulting her looks was going to make her cry and promise never to see the twins again?

"Your mother's dead is she not little commoner?" Hannah asked cruelly as she giggled to herself and dipped down to Haruhi's level smoothly.

"Don't you think it would just be horrible if somehow her gravesite was raided don't you think?" Hannah asked lowly so that her sister couldn't hear it. Haruhi shook at those words as the image of her mothers grave, empty and burning stuck harshly into her mind.

"D-don't bring her into this you witch…" Haruhi whispered as she shook with fear. Hannah, seeing this weak spot, smiled as she ran her hands through Haruhi's hair before grasping onto the locks and tossing Haruhi's head up to see the water filling in the big brown eyes.

"You're fathers a transvestite too right? You know I heard a lot of people in town talking about burning that damn gay bar to the ground. Oh how horrible would it be if you're father was stuck inside?" Hannah whispered. Haruhi's eyes widened as tears started to form into little pools by her eyes.

"…you've seen death before Haruhi right? Mmm…I can hear your father's screams now as the fire slowly and painfully burns his skin while all you can do is stand outside…watching…crying…we rich can do things that you'd never imagine of little commoner…are you really willing to risk everything for a couple of boys?" Hannah shook her head as she got down to Haruhi's level before pulling her chin up off of the ground, straining her neck muscles. Haruhi took in a gasped breath as Hannah's eyes lit with such disgust it shot through her and into her heart.

"Now listen and listen good you little whore, stay away from the twins!" Hannah screamed. Haruhi twitched at that statement as she shook her head, attempting to break her head away from the wicked woman's grip. She was not going to be controlled and she would not let her think that she had broken her!

"ITS HIKARU AND KAORU!" Haruhi screamed suddenly for the first time since they had started to beat her. Hannah looked behind her and at seeing now men she laughed and scraped the girls chin. Hannah smiled as she laughed softly before digging her nails into Haruhi's cheek.

"The twins won't come no matter how much you scream for them." Hannah whispered cruelly. Haruhi flinched and closed her eyes tightly as she tried to break her hands free.

"THEIR NOT THE TWINS! ITS HIKARU AND KAORU! THEIR NAMES ARE HIKARU AND KAORU!" Haruhi screamed. Hannah blinked and dropped Haruhi's head to the ground as she stared at the girl. She had the nerve to try and correct her? Haruhi panted angrily as she let her head fall to the earth, dirt smudging her cheeks.

"What are you babbling about now?!" She growled out.

"You keep calling them, 'the twins' or 'those two' they have names you know! They're different even though they look the same!" Haruhi yelled out. Not thinking the sadistic girl growled as she kicked the young girl in the head. Haruhi let out a yip as she suddenly started to give into shaky breaths. Hannah gasped as she saw small trickles of blood flow down from Haruhi's now bruised lip. Haruhi moaned and let her head rest down as she gave in. Everything was spinning.

"…what would you know…" Hannah whispered in a scared voice. Haley shook, blood; she hated blood.

"Obviously a lot more than you." A dark voice came out from behind the corner. Hannah gasped as she looked over at the pond where an orange haired man stood, his hands going from relaxed palms to clenched fist. His face looked absolutely deadly as an aura of killing surrounded him. Hannah's eyes watered as she took a step back. Why were those eyes being directed at her? Why was he looking at her with such distaste? She was just trying to protect him from that whench!

"Hikaru?" Hannah asked with an unstill voice. The man shook with rage as he threw out his hand quickly.

"Get out of here right now or by god I swear you won't make it out of this garden alive" He screamed out, his voice strong and thunderous. Haley flinched and put her head down, ashamed as Hannah stood strong, her watery eyes turning confident. Haruhi might have won this round yes…but she would win in the long run.

"…come on Haley…we'll have our chance to explain ourselves later….it's no use talking to such a man under the spell she has over him." Hannah whispered coolly as she waved her hand making Haley whisper a small apology in Hikaru's direction and run under her sister's arm as they quickly walked off, their previous violent streak seeming to be underneath them for the moment. The man's eyes glared daggers into them as they left and only softened when they were completely out of sight.

"My gosh that scared me so much." The boy whispered gently, completely out of tone from before as he now shivered. What would he have done if the girls didn't leave? He wouldn't have been able to bring himself to hit them, he was just glad they bought his act. Haruhi smiled slightly and clenched onto the grass as she tried to sit up.

"You kinda scared me too. Now come over here and help me up, I'm getting this dress dirty." Haruhi whispered as she coughed and rubbed her bruised head.

"Haruhi!" He yelled in a scared tone as he ran over to her before quickly. He sighed and looked down at her as she sat on her knees, hesitant to touch her. Haruhi looked down at the ground as she put out her arms like a small child wanting to be held. The orange haired boy sighed sadly and picked her up ever so carefully in his arms.

Haruhi winced every so often as his soft hands trailed over a bruise or cut but whispered a thank you under her breath. Haruhi stared up at him, surprised at the face that she found. Haruhi's eyes watered as she wrapped her arm around his neck and pulled her head into his shoulder. He sighed and rubbed her back lightly as he pressed his cold nose against the top of her head, not daring to put his lips on her.

"I thought you hated me." She whispered softly. The orange haired boy sighed heavily as he shook his head and held onto her tighter. He rubbed where her arm wasn't damaged and took his head out of her head just enough so she could hear him.

"Why would I hate you?" He asked with a large grin.

"…that was a pretty good act, but I still have to wonder…are you still acting… **Kaoru**…?" Haruhi whispered. Kaoru laughed softly and rubbed the back of his head, still holding onto her. He hid his sock as he slowly nodded and let out a relieved breath. Even in the dark of the night she was still able to tell the difference between the two of them. The worst part was that he was hoping she would think he was Hikaru if only for a moment.

"I didn't think they'd take me as seriously if they knew I wasn't Hikaru. Plus, it would have tottaly ruined the mood don't you think?" He asked nervously, trying to keep the air light between them. If Haruhi was still able to make jokes she would be fine. Haruhi smiled in his skin as she leaned against him cautiously. Kaoru continued to rub her back as he sat down in front of the pond, making sure to hold onto her as he slowly set her beside him.

"Sorry. I'm not as strong as Hikaru; I don't think I can carry you all the way back." Kaoru whispered as he stretched out his arm and pulled her head back to his shoulder. Haruhi closed her eyes as she watched the ducks slowly drift from the waters surface to the bushes.

"…It's ok…it's just a part of who you are Kaoru…nothing to apologize for. I like you just how you are…" Haruhi whispered softly. Kaoru looked back over at her and sighed as he patted her head lightly. He knew that she had added the last bit to tell him something that didn't need to be said. Haruhi could only watch as a few of the ducks quacked softly before swimming gracefully to the other side of the water's edge.

"_Ha-ha! Ok! It's a promise then. Tomorrow I'll bring my brother!" _

"…you ok Haruhi?" Kaoru asked, tilting his head. Haruhi slowly nodded as she felt her eyes looking back over to Kaoru.

"...Yea…I'm fine…just thinking" Haruhi whispered, her eyes fluttering open and closed as the pain from her wounds slowly started to vanish into a calming numb. Kaoru slowly nodded and rubbed the side of her cheek with his knuckle.

"About?"

"…about the first person I ever lost..." She whispered her eyes dazing off.

Kaoru slowly nodded, situating himself so that she could lean against him while he got relaxed, it would be a while till anyone found them so he mine as well be careful.

"…yea…me too…" he whispered as he looked down at her.

"Ha-Haruhi." A heaved voice whispered as the two twisted their heads behind them to see Hikaru breathing heavily as he leaned against the hedges in the garden, looking on the verge of tears. Haruhi smiled sweetly at him, waving as he looked down at the ground, rubbing his temple.

"….Haruhi…" He whispered pathetically. The man chuckled as he walked over and picked her up in his arms, not even caring for her permission as he wrapped her legs around him and squished her head into his chest as he let out heavy breaths. Hikaru kissed the side of her head quickly as he held onto her, his eyes oblivious to Kaoru.

"Haruhi are you ok?" He asked softly. Even though he knew the answer to his question he wanted to hear from her mouth that she would be ok. The boy held onto her for dear life as she gave a hushed cough. She forced out a giggle as she nodded, his hair scratching against her cheek.

"Yea...I'm fine Hikaru." Haruhi whispered as Hikaru flinched and wrapped his arms so that his hands were clenching onto her. Haruhi laughed a bit sadly as she rubbed Hikaru's back, trying not to upset him anymore.

"Hikaru you're squishing me." She moaned out. Hikaru didn't release her however.

"…tell me again…tell me again that you're ok." Hikaru whispered. Haruhi's eyes widened as she took in shaky breaths. How did he always manage to bring her to her knees? How could he always break through her with just one sentence? Once more the girls threats rang through her head as she suddenly threw herself into him, her head buried in his shoulder as she squeezed her legs around him, her hands clinging tightly onto his neck as she shook with silent sobs.

Kaoru felt an iron anvil drop in his stomach as he watched his brother sigh and return to holding her as he whispered words into her ear to calm her. Kaoru turned his head away quickly, trying so hard not to be jealous of their moment. Hikaru tried to hide his depression as he looked down at Haruhi and rubbed her hair, smoothing it down her neck and back as he kissed her cheek and forehead whenever she started to shake. How could he tell her the news that he dreaded to say when she was in such a weak state?

"…Haruhi…we're going to get you back to our house and get you taken care of….and then…we've got to talk to you? Ok?" Kaoru whispered kindly. Haruhi took her head out of Hikaru's shoulder and nodded as she rubbed at her dry eyes. She really didn't want anything to happen to her parents, but what could she do? Hikaru and Kaoru were her friends, and if she gave into that woman's temptations without even know the extent of her actual power she would regret it for the rest of her life.

Haruhi sighed as she put her head down on Hikaru when he settled her body so that he had a free hand. Haruhi let her eyes close halfway as she held onto him. She had never noticed how strong he was before, he had picked her up with ease and carried her without so much as a grunt many times before, but it was only at the moment when Kaoru attempted to take her away had she realized how well-built he really was.

Hikaru held her with one hand as he walked over to the sitting Kaoru and extended his hand for him. Kaoru blinked, looking at the extended palm for a few minutes before grabbing onto it quickly. Hikaru quickly pulled his brother off of the ground as Kaoru held onto Hikaru's hand tightly. He stood across from him, his red eyes staring at Hikaru's face.

"…Thanks…" He whispered softly. Hikaru could only smile.

"Heh...it's ok…I'll always be there for you…I hope you know that." Hikaru whispered. Kaoru's eyes widened as Hikaru let out a heavy sigh before laughing again and turning his back to the blindly innocent and confused Kaoru. Hikaru tried to smile like Kaoru could, but his smile was sad, and held pain in it as he gently caressed Haruhi's face. Hikaru ran his thumb down her bleeding lip and his eyes immediately watered. Looking back he saw that Kaoru was following behind them at the moment, his eyes averting from the two of them.

Hikaru took in a deep breath as he pushed Haruhi's hair out of her face and held his thumb against Haruhi's lip. Haruhi flinched, her eyes closing quickly as he did, a fresh trickle of blood sliding over the dried blood over her pink lips. Hikaru stared down at her, making her hazy face blush as he tilted his head so that it rested gently under her hair and in the crook of her neck.

Haruhi held onto the top of his head as he held her in the awkward position, her breathing becoming scary as her skin felt heated. She was sick, so of course her blood was rushing and her face felt heated. Haruhi nodded to herself; that must have been it. Hikaru let out a soft breath on her neck, only making the situation worse as he trailed up her chin until he was staring up at her bleeding lip.

Without so much as a word he didn't dare look back as he leaned up smoothly and trailed his tongue over her injury, taking her blood off of her and into him. Haruhi shivered and tried to push herself away but Hikaru merely swept her back into position before she could complain about what he had done.

"You better not have AIDS" He teased as she blushed like a school girl and hit his head with all of the strength she had left.

"Shut the hell up you rich bastard!"

Inside Kaoru smiled as his anger at Hikaru and Haruhi floated away into the night air. They hadn't made him sit on the sidelines- they had forced him into the game.

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"DAMN IT DAMN IT DAMN IT!" Hikaru screamed as he blasted the orange basketball he was holding at the hoop. It hit the rim, clanging off to the side as the ball bounced off the court. Hikaru sighed and took in heavy breaths as he bent over, sweat dripping off of his forehead. Haruhi had fallen asleep some time ago, and Kaoru had locked himself up in their room, attempting to find some peace of mind.

Hikaru, feeling so much anger that he thought he was going to burst, had turned to their gym to work off his anger. Hikaru sighed as he dropped to the floor; still rubbing his head for it was blasting with an oncoming migraine. Hikaru let his head drop so that he was looking at the wooden floor as everything began to spin again. It had been a long day, and he figured that it would only get longer after his little chat with Haruhi- for now however…he would let her sleep.

"…You doing ok Brother?" Kaoru asked in his normal high pitched voice as he walked through the gyms doors and onto the court floor. Hikaru let out a grunt as his answer before picking up the ball and shooting again, this time making it in with a successful swish. He had always been good at sports, but Kaoru always had a harder time keeping up with the constant physical demands, and had never made it as well as Hikaru did. Before, when they swore never to be apart, any type of difference was a bad thing- so Hikaru hid his natural athletic ability from everyone else and practiced in their home gymnasium.

"Look it's not that bad…" Kaoru whispered softly. At this Hikaru threw the basketball again, the unbroken focus of trying to get the ball in the hoop the only thing keeping him from blasting out of angry.

"NOT THAT BAD?!" Hikaru suddenly snapped out as he threw the basketball with one hand, making it bounce off the top of the hoop and to the back of the gym as Hikaru turned out quickly, throwing the towel off of his shoulder and onto the ground, his eyes flaming.

"WHAT THE HELL DO YOU MEAN IT'S NOT SO BAD?!" Hikaru screamed out, throwing his hands into the air. Kaoru could only stand in front of him, glancing down at the ground as his brother screamed; this is what he had needed to do all along. Hikaru was one of those people that needed to yell to get out his anger, even if it hurt those around him.

"…I'm sorry Kaoru…" Hikaru whispered as he hid his head in his hands. Kaoru looked up, Hikaru had never apologized like that before.

"..You don't need to apologize for yelling…I understand." Kaoru whispered in a soft tone as Hikaru shook again, this time a few tears spilling from his eyes as he looked up at his brother. Kaoru slipped back out of shock, he had never seen his brother look so scared before, so helpless.

"Not just for yelling Kaoru." He whispered tensely as he shook his head, his one stream of tear sliding off his cheek and onto the slick floor. Kaoru stood tense as his brother broke down right before his eyes.

"I'm sorry for everything…I'm so selfish…and I never think of you…and you're always suffering because of me…but you always smile and laugh like the idiot that you are. God you must hate me so much. I swear Kaoru I want so badly for Haruhi to love you instead of me." Hikaru whispered, not even daring to look at his brother as he took in soft breaths, his hands twitching as Kaoru blinked.

"…Ho-how…how long have you known?" Kaoru asked softly.

"…always…ever since I woke up…" Hikaru cried out, throwing his hands over his face as he started to cry harder.

"But you still cut those cords in hopes that she'd end up with me!" Hikaru yelled, shaking even harsher at the memory as he clung to his skin.

"Br-Brother…please stop crying…" Kaoru whimpered out, his own eyes watering as he saw his brother for the first time sob in front of him. Hikaru had only cried once in public, and any other time, if ever, he had secluded himself from everyone- including Kaoru.

"I found them when we were leaving. I had never felt so ashamed of myself in my life. I actually put a move on her when I knew that you loved her! I'm the worst! I'm the worst type of person!" Hikaru yelled as he moved his hands, his eyes closed tightly and red from tears as they streamed down his face freely.

"Brother…please…please stop." Kaoru whispered, flinching at every tear that hit the ground.

"I was in so much pain when I thought you were dead but now that you're alive I'm walking all over you again- taking advantage of your kindness and taking the one person that really means a lot to you!" Hikaru yelled as his knees shook, his eyes wavering as his eyes, usually happy and carefree, became small and shook.

"A man like me is better off dead."

"STOP IT!"

Kaoru became the spitting image of his brother as he shook with fear as he jumped forward and used both of his hands to knock Hikaru down onto the ground. Kaoru's arms shook lightly as he stood frozen in place.

"You don't need to apologize for everything…I understand…." Kaoru whispered as he stared down at his brother. Hikaru sniffed a bit, composing himself together as he wiped at his eyes quickly and blinked away the rest of the tears. Kaoru gave a weak smile before putting out his hand for his brother to take. Hikaru slowly clasped his hand in Kaoru's before closing his eyes pulled his brother down.

Kaoru did not yell but could only gasp as he was sent tripping down to the floor by Hikaru's hands. Hikaru pulled him in tighter so that he landed in Hikaru's arms. Hikaru wrapped a tight arm around Karou's back as he stuffed his head onto his chest, holding him in a tight hug. Kaoru blinked and slowly wrapped his arms around Hikaru as well.

"…Sorry brother…" Kaoru whispered as he flinched and slowly started to cry onto his brother.

"Sorry for everything…."

"…Kaoru…." Hikaru suddenly whispered.

"…Yes Hikaru?" Kaoru asked softly.

"…I don't want to be engaged…"

"…Neither do I Hikaru…neither do I."


	7. The Beach's Hurt and The Gardens Comfort

Authors Note: Yo. Hope everyone is doing good, I'm really happy because I finally broke my curse and thought of a pretty good idea for a new fanfic after I finish this one (yes it takes me this long to think of one, so I gotta start myself early) anyways I noticed that all of you scored Alternate Universes low on you're polls, but would it be different if I wrote one? Anyways I'll just see how things go.

For now I'm working on a teaser and a cover picture. Enjoy the next chapter of Just Haruhi!

Ps: Anyone recognize the very start of this chapter? Ohohoh. I'm such a creative author aren't I, and so subtle! XD

(by the way, I tried to get myself in the mood by listening to P.s: I still love you so…yea…)

Enjoy the cliché-ness...and the long chapter…to make up for me being an ass and making you wait…..20 pages….ugh…my fingers hurt.

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_Sirens wailed in the background of her mind, and footsteps of the shooter suddenly took off. Many people were around them, looking horrified and as paralyzed as she was. Haruhi started to shake horrible as Hikaru swaggered some, his hand holding onto his chest as blood dripped down his mouth. He fell backwards and onto Haruhi, making her have to spread her legs and hold up her arms to support his weight. Camera's flashed all around her from people's picture phones but she didn't even notice. The world was black at the moment and the only thing that was real was the fact that Hikaru was dying in her arms._

_Wait- what was going on?! Why was Hikaru in such a state?! Her mind was tottaly blank and her wide brown eyes started to shake as she tried to figure out what was going on. A pain she had never known before arose inside of her as she looked down at Hikaru's deadpan face. This wasn't just her best friend dying; this pain was that of a dying lover. Haruhi held her heart as she held in cries. _

_Whimpers escaped her as she fell due to his nearly dead weight. She guided his head as gently as she could to her lap as she finally broke and sobbed, digging her head into his hair. God it hurt so much, pain, please go away! Why?! Why did this happen to him?! Why did it hurt so much?! They had only been going out for three days and already- already she was sobbing over his bleeding body. _

_The ambulance and cop cars weren't too far away, for even she could hear their annoying tones and sirens coming down the street. Haruhi grabbed onto Hikaru's hair tightly as she sobbed into him, knowing his fate all to well. Everyone died who got close to her, and now, it would be the same fate for Hikaru._

"…_Hikaru…" Haruhi whispered, hoping to get a response from him. "…Hikaru?"_

_The girl, tired and broken, kissed every part of the top of his head as she started to sob harder due to the fact that he wasn't responding to her. She took in deep breaths and started to run her fingers through his long locks before she tried again._

"…_Hikaru…Hikaru please say something…" Haruhi whispered painfully. Hikaru's eyes stayed somewhat closed as she lifted her head off of his own. He continued to bleed and his hands were twitching unhealthily. His face was becoming paler and as she stroked her hands down him his body felt like ice to her touch._

_Her pupils shook as she tried to imagine his skin, warm and healthy, hoping that somehow it would turn it into a reality. Haruhi shuddered as she cried again, this was a dream, it had to be, so why didn't she doubt that all of this was real? Why did she, after only seeing part of the story, feel as though she had lived it her whole life?_

_Haruhi took in a deep breath once more, letting out a shuddered sob as she pulled him to her. People stared, many women started to cry into their husbands shoulders, and a few threw up do to the blood in a trashcan. But all felt a tear in their heart as Haruhi cried out for him._

"_HIKARU!" Haruhi screamed out, her fingertips suddenly grabbing onto his hands as she brought them up to her face, her eyes squinting in her sobs as her chest heaved up and down with open sorrow. Haruhi twisted up her face in remorse. It hurt, it hurt so badly._

"_NO! HIKARU COME BACK! IT SHOULDN'T END THIS WAY! PLEASE!" Haruhi screamed. She felt like this was the part that had gone unwritten, and bonds that were once restricting her had burst free. Haruhi shook his body in her hands, her red and puffy eyes glaring down at him as she slapped him across the face as hard as she could._

"_WAKE UP YOU JERK!" Haruhi screamed at the top of her lungs. The paramedics had arrived, and though, hesitant, reached over to grab Haruhi from off of the mans body. Haruhi screamed in protest kicking her legs and flailing her arms like a mad woman. _

"_NO! DON'T TAKE HIM AWAY FROM ME! PLEASE! HES ALL I HAVE LEFT!" Haruhi screamed out as sobs escaped her once again. If they took Hikaru's body that would mean there really was nothing left, and that it was all over. They could always start a new relationship, but you can't take back a life! _

"_PLEASE! GOD! IF YOU'RE LISTENING PLEASE GIVE HIM BACK! I LOVE HIM! PLEASE ARE YOU LISTENING?" Haruhi yelled up at the sky, her tears flying as her hair did. Haruhi finally broke the cord to her rage and energy dying as she fell limp in the man who had been holding her back's arms. She cried desperately, not even caring to hide her face in her hands as she whimpered pathetically. _

"…_Hikaru…take me too…why didn't you take me too…" Haruhi asked the ground as she sobbed heavily, her entire body shaking. _

"…_you should've…you should've taken me too…"_

"AHHH!" Haruhi bolted up with a scream as she sobbed into the air. Her eyes blinked at her surroundings as she suddenly touched the tips of her eyes delicately. It was dark and the usually blue walled room was dark and horrifying. Each new shadow caused a fear to jump in Haruhi's stomach. A dream? Right?

It had to be a dream.

But it felt so real, she could still feel the horrible burning for death rising in her heart at the image of Hikaru's dead body stretched out in her open arms. Haruhi glanced at the clock, it was around two in the morning or so judging by the larger hand's placement, but somewhere in her mind, a thread snapped.

It didn't matter what time it was or what type of logic was going on in her brain, her feet threw themselves off of the bed side and onto the floor as she took off in a run out of her room and down the hall. She just had to see him; she just had to know that he was safe. All she needed was to hear his soft breathing and she could be satisfied. The girl felt her eyes water again subconsciously as Hikaru's dead eyes stared at her from across the room.

"HIKARU PLEASE BE OK!" Haruhi screamed as she sobbed softly. Why was she crying? Maybe it was just an after effect from the dream, she couldn't tell. It wasn't like her to cry over a dream, or for no reason…but…It felt like she hadn't woken just yet, and that these tears would continue to fall until reality took her in its arms. Haruhi choked back something in her throat as she skidded to a stop in front of Hikaru's room, and without knocking, threw open the door.

Instead of finding a murder scene or blood lying across every inch of the walls, Haruhi could only gaze upon a sleeping body, breathing in and out peacefully, his bright orange hair falling in whips across his face. Something in Haruhi unclenched as she let her hand slide down the wall when she fell onto her knees near the doorway, silent tears still pouring.

Thank goodness…

Haruhi cried very softly into her clothes as she did not want to wake the tired boy. He looked as beat as she was, and an eerie sadness hid itself in his dreams as well as she bit her t-shirt to keep quiet. Her tears nearly instantly stopped. She glanced up at Hikaru once more, just to confirm that he was indeed alright. Haruhi leaned against the doorway with her head before letting her eyes close a bit.

Maybe…she'd just watch him for a little longer.

How was she to know that another orange haired boy was lying on the floor, watching her as well, and cringing at her every shake?

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"Haruhi?"

Haruhi's glittering brown eyes fluttered open as she lay on the silky bed, her lazy exterior only slightly perking as the door opened a smidge. Haruhi mumbled an all clear before placing her head back upon the pillow, its soft cold fabric soothing her hot cheeks. Her muscles still hurt like hell from last night and though she looked a bit better, the bruises were twice as sensitive to movement.

A pair of golden eyes peered at her as she shivered at coarse hands touching her skin. Hikaru placed his hand, ever so lightly upon her bare shoulder. Haruhi considered flicking it away, but at seeing how dramatically he was acting she thought better of it. The girl yawned, stretching out the pain in her muscles as she leaned her head against Hikaru's chest sleepily.

"…come on Haruhi get up..." Hikaru whispered numbly. Haruhi shook her head stupidly, wrapping her arms around his stomach as she pulled her head closer into him. Hikaru tried his best to resist taking her in his arms right then and there, and could only fight back the urge by thinking of small cute defenseless dead puppies. Haruhi had sure gotten a lot more physical than normal ever since he had brought her back home from the attack.

Hikaru pulled away, rubbing her cheek with his thumb as he leaned his head against her one. Haruhi stared up at him innocently as she rubbed the sand out of her eyes quickly. Hikaru closed his own gold orbs, letting her warm breathe heat up his face as she gave a quick sneeze, making him let out a small laugh while she crunched up her nose and twitched it.

"…oh yea. Is there something you wanted to say Hikaru?" Haruhi asked gently. Hikaru nodded solemnly, not looking excited in the least about what he was going to have to say. The boy slowly sighed and rubbed the back of his orange head, pain trickling in and out of his system. This was evident on his face as he turned away, his hyper and normal self vanishing out the window.

"…Yea…I…I wanted to tell you something…" he whispered through gritted teeth. Haruhi sat on the edge of the bed, dreading whatever it was that was going to come out of his mouth. She gripped at the sheets, her heart hoping for the best, her mind preparing her for the worst. She slowly nodded, holding back a gulp.

"Well then…go on…" Haruhi whispered.

Hikaru flinched and opened his mouth to say something, still keeping his head to the side as his eyes focused on the wall. He couldn't say it. Hikaru gave up, letting his head fall as he fell onto a nearby chair and lifted his orange scruff of hair just enough so that his eyes could be seen.

"Go on a date with me…" Hikaru whispered gravely. Haruhi blinked, surprised that those words could come out in such a tone. She slowly nodded, though it was not out of happiness or glee, but was simply laced with understanding. She had been smiling minutes before, and sobbing only hours ago, but now…all she could do was turn to him numbly and hold out her hand.

"…come on…you can get dressed then we'll leave…" Hikaru whispered softly. Haruhi nodded and scratched her head quickly before started toward the closet. Hikaru followed absent mindedly as she raised a brow and slowly let out a low laugh, making him snap out of his gaze as she stood in the edge of the closet, both hands on each side as she twisted her head.

"You going to pick out my outfit for me? Well alright…just nothing too small like last time…" Haruhi whispered in such a tone that Hikaru blushed and had to rub his eyes once more. Had she really just said that?! Was he still sleeping? Haruhi laughed and ran into the closet, him following quickly as she let a happy smile beam across her face, if she could get him back to normal for just a day, she would be happy!

"So are you letting my watch you change?" Hikaru asked in his normal mischievous tone as Haruhi skipped behind the screen. He faked a pout and smirked as he sat down in one of the chairs in the closet before closing his eyes and letting out a soft sigh. Hikaru started to dig through the closets many options of outfits before once more slipping into his depressed state- the diversion not becoming a good one as Haruhi peeked up from over the screen.

"Oi! Do you something for me to wear yet?!" Haruhi suddenly called out. Hikaru's head snapped up as he looked to see if Haruhi had tripped. Quickly ducking down she waited a minute before slowly slipping her top off and throwing it on top of the screen.

She could tell his eyes were on her as her silhouette stripped off her pants. She made sure he watching, he was a boy, and any trouble could be distracted with teasing. Haruhi blushed the deepest red she had ever been in her life as she forced herself to hang up her pants on top of the screen. Hikaru was scaring her, she had never seen him so down, and her body had acted on her own. Haruhi bit her lip as she crossed her arms over her chest, damn female hormones.

"…yea…where do you want me to put it?" Hikaru asked, his voice cracking a bit at the last part. Haruhi let out a sigh, good, he was back into his nervous self. The woman looked around a little, the screen was only a one way and even if she leaned over to get them out of his hands she would still show herself. Haruhi considered just putting her clothes back on as she heard Hikaru sigh once more. Haruhi rolled her eyes and pushed her hair off of her shoulders before forcing out a girlish giggle.

"Well if you're that disappointed you can just come and give them to me in person…" Haruhi called back. Oh Hikaru owed her, big! Once he was back to normal for good, she would beat him senseless for making him resort to such matters; a pair of clothes suddenly banging on her head from above made Haruhi grunt as she picked up the material.

"Stop being such a little brat." Hikaru called out stubbornly. Haruhi giggled as she pulled the plain white t-shirt over her chest and some jeans over her now curved legs. They were still a bit tight, but that was only because they were built for models and not a growing girl's body. Though the entire outfit was simple it was comfortable, and that was what she looked for most. But…why had Hikaru picked out something so boring and common?

Haruhi walked out, still suspicious of him as Hikaru put out his arm. Haruhi slowly walked toward him as he laid his open arm gently across her shoulder, wrapped his loose hand gently to her neck so he wouldn't accidentally grace her collar and make her mad at him.

"So where are we going?" Haruhi asked gently as she touched his hand with her gentle fingertips. He flinched as she caressed the hand on her shoulder. He loved that soft hand, the way that it knew exactly where to touch to make his mind snap back to its best state.

"Haha! Wherever you want! I figured since you took all your time to take care of me when I was sick today could be all about you!" Hikaru looked down at her and laughed happily, his teeth clenching together into what seemed to be a smug grin. Haruhi gulped, feeling it rise in her throat and drop down to her stomach as her hands shook softly. Though he looked happy, his eyes showed such pain she felt like he would drop dead at any given moment.

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"Are you sure this is where you want to go? I mean, our limo could take us anywhere." Hikaru whispered to Haruhi as they stepped out of the limousine. Hikaru looked back at the limo as the windows to the front opened and a rather old looking man nodded to Hikaru and Haruhi. Haruhi smiled and walked to the window, flashing the man a thankful grin.

"Thank you so much Mr. Otoharuh…you have no idea how much this means to us." Haruhi whispered as he slowly nodded a light blush on his cheeks as he rubbed the young girls hair and gave her a sentimental smile.

"Well you remind me of my daughter Miss Haruhi, I'd do anything for you to smile at me like that. Call anytime you need me ok?" He whispered happily before letting her step away as she waved and watched him drive off.

"…I thought his name was Jeeves"

"Nope."

"He has a daughter?"

"Well he did. She moved out some time ago because she was disappointed in his career choice."

"…really?"

"Yea they haven't talked in three years" Haruhi answered still smiling as she continued to wave until the car was tottaly out of sight and hidden. Hikaru slowly stepped beside her as he looked down at the girl. He had learned something new everyday from her…

"How do you know all of this?" He suddenly asked.

"…I asked…" Haruhi whispered as she smiled and turned to look at him

"…I never thought to ask our employees about that kinda stuff…" Hikaru whispered.

Haruhi slowly nodded and peered out at the nearly empty boardwalk. She had known about this beach for a long time, for her father used to take her when she needed a get away. It was a rather calm place with calming scenery and a few shops to go into if you felt bored. Haruhi stared down the street and toward the broken boardwalk.

"Well sometimes you need to go up and beyond with people Hikaru…they aren't just commoners, there's nothing common about them at all…"

The next few minutes were the most awkward that she had ever spent with Hikaru before. The world was spinning at a fast pace and Hikaru's eyes bore into her back as he stood behind her, slowly following wherever she led. Haruhi glanced at some of the shops and smiled as an old man, wilting with age, waved happily at the two. He stood near a stand, apparently selling some type of odd smelling food. Haruhi, curious by nature, hurried over and looked down at the bubbling orange, brown and green substance. Hikaru, now curious as well, peered over her shoulder, glancing down at it as he raised a brow, sticking out his tongue.

"…what IS that?!" Hikaru asked loudly. Haruhi smacked him easily before looking up at the man with an apologetic smile.

"I'm sorry. My friend is very rude. I apologize. Now sir, may I ask what this delicacy is?" Haruhi asked speaking in her kindest voice. The man smiled happily, half of his teeth missing as he explained his 'secret recipe' to the small girl. Haruhi slowly nodded, half bent over, half sniffing the different bowls as he laughed and they engaged in conversation. Hikaru mumbled and rubbed his temple and glanced at Haruhi. She seemed to be happy talking about food and cooking, in fact, it was the most natural that he had seen her in a long time. Hikaru sighed and leaned against the wall, sensing the she might take a while.

But today was all about her…

And he wouldn't bring her down…

"Are you sure? I mean, thank you very much sir." Haruhi cooed out happily as she took what looked to be a small piece of paper in her hands. The man laughed and nodded, his hands shooing her off. Haruhi smiled and placed some money on the table before taking the two cups that he had handed her and walking over to Hikaru.

"Tell me you're not doing what I think you're going too do." Hikaru whispered. Haruhi smiled happily and held out one for him. Hikaru shook his head and crossed his hands into an x before backing up. Too bad he was already cornered against the wall.

"Just eat it." Haruhi whispered. Hikaru took it gingerly and cautiously in his hands as he turned it to the side. There was a label? He started to read, observing how it didn't say EXACTLY what the substance was, and was merely going on about the benefits of good luck that it would bring into their lives. He rolled his eyes and scrolled down to the very bottom where there lay a warning label.

_Warning: May cause headaches, irritation, random changes in hormones, giddy giggles, too much energy, and fear of Splenda. _

"…It actually has a warning label. Haruhi it has a warning label! SPLENDA HARUHI!" Hikaru yelled as he looked over at the girl who was happily eating at the bizarre food. A smile he hadn't seen since she had taken her first bite of cafeteria food graced her full lips as she giggled and turned to him holding out the spoon.

"Saw aww!" Haruhi squealed out, seeming about to bounce out of her skin with energy as she giggled again.

"Bu-but…war-warning label Haruhi." Hikaru whimpered out. Haruhi blinked innocently, her hand holding steady for him to eat off of the spoon as he sighed, knowing he wasn't about to win this battle. He rolled his eyes dramatically, making sure that she saw as he leaned forward and took the food gingerly in his mouth. Haruhi leaned forward as he took a bite and kissed his forehead making him nearly choke as he forced the food down his throat.

"What'd you do that for?!" Hikaru asked as he wiped at his lips quickly, a bright blush on his cheeks as he turned away.

"Well…I wanted to comfort you because you were scared of the warning label." Haruhi laughed out.

"You're such a good boy!" Haruhi cooed out as she patted his head like a small child. Hikaru twitched and hid in laughter as he realized how good the substance in his mouth tasted. Acting like he was doing it to just to please her as he took another spoonful.

"So do you want to call Jee-…Mr. Otoharuh to take us somewhere else? This place isn't exactly jumping you know." Hikaru whispered as he ran his hands down his head.

"…it's ok Hikaru. I don't want to go to anyplace where we wouldn't be able to spend any real time with each other." Haruhi whispered. Hikaru slowly nodded as he stretched by standing up. Haruhi did the same looking around before walking again, the air becoming too tense. Hikaru slipped by her side as he sighed and thought over how he was going to tell her. He stuffed his hands in his pockets before looking up at the sky and walking in step with her own small feet.

There was no way…

There was no way he could tell her…

"So there was something that you wanted to talk about?" Haruhi asked gently as she looked up at him. Hikaru flinched and laughed before rubbing the back of his head and holding out his hand. Haruhi stared at the open palm before raising a brow. He became nervous at her refusal to take his hand and quickly redrew it back into his pant pocket. Haruhi rolled her eyes and let out a heavy sigh before looking away and digging his hand into her own, intertwining their fingers.

"…Hikaru…" Haruhi whispered lowly, her voice numb and out of place as she stared down at the ground. Hikaru bit his lip as he looked for a distraction. He suddenly tugged at her hand, pulling her toward the boardwalk as he laughed happily and pointed to a photo booth, cutting off her sentence.

"Come on Haruhi! Let's go get our pictures taken!" He called out happily. Haruhi could only stare up at him as she sighed and slowly nodded, her feet jumping by themselves as she rushed toward the booth with him. By the time that they got into the booth Haruhi and Hikaru had to squish in together just to fit into the small thing. Haruhi started to laugh as Hikaru searched Haruhi's jean pockets for some change. Haruhi slapped at his hands quickly, still giggling.

"Hey stop that tickles!" Haruhi laughed out as he pulled out a few quarters and placed them into the slot. Haruhi was squished against the side, and so, in an effort to make her blush, and get into a less harmful position, Hikaru pulled her up on his lap. Haruhi fell back a bit, her cheeks red as the first flash went.

"H-Hikaru! Don't do that so suddenly!" Haruhi yelled as she laughed and leant back against him and smiled, a real laugh escaping her as he chucked as well, another bright flash blinding their vision. Hikaru smirked and slowly tipped Haruhi's chin so that she was looking at him. They were in a photo booth, alone, and still had one more picture, why not a famous kiss scene?

Hikaru leaned in, making Haruhi blush a bit as she gazed at him a bit, her back arching as her eyes closed halfway at his slow temptation; if he was going to kiss her than do it already. Haruhi's eyes closed as she waited, and seeing that nothing was happening she squinted a bright orb open.

"…what are you waiting for? Don't tell me you're getting shy." Haruhi dared as he sat there, looking rather stupid as he kept his head tilted just enough so that he could kiss her at any given moment. He glanced at the ticker and waited as he laughed.

"I'm waiting for the photo." He laughed out. Haruhi smiled at his laugh as she let out a sigh. How on Earth did she fall for such an idiot? The girl smirked to herself as relief spread over her, he seemed to have returned to normal for another moment of the day. The girl grinned and hugged his head to her chest since she was sitting on top of him. Hikaru smiled as well and wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling himself into her.

Suddenly the flash went off.

"Aww me missed the picture!" Hikaru whimpered out as he heard the old machine attempt to print out their pictures. Haruhi slowly nodded before trying to move her leg so that she could escape the small prison, as soon as one leg was over however Hikaru suddenly stopped her, looking into her bright brown eyes as his own wavered. Haruhi felt her heart sting again, he was upset again.

"…Hikaru…" she wanted to beg him to tell her what was wrong, but she didn't have time. Hikaru let his head fall as he tried to regain himself; almost unbelieving that he had let her see him in such a state. Haruhi leaned forward a bit, rubbing the top of his head as she lifted his head.

"…come on…the suns setting…" Hikaru mumbled as he moved, allowing Haruhi to escape his grasp as he pushed back the curtain of the booth. Haruhi stared at his back as he walked out without another word, his damp mood returning again. Haruhi bluntly hit her head against the metal booth as she growled. Haruhi sighed and hid her head in her hands, was she doing something wrong?!

Haruhi stormed out of the booth, now angry that he was switching his moods so quickly. He told her this entire day was going to be about her, he promised her a nice date, and he told her there was something that needed to be said! So why wasn't he saying anything?! Haruhi stormed onto the beach only to be sunk into the sand at her heavy tennis shoes. Haruhi grunted and threw her shoes and socks to the side before running over to Hikaru's side, sand squishing calmly in-between her toes.

"Hikaru! Tell me what's going on right now!" Haruhi screamed out as she stood behind Hikaru. Hikaru slowly turned to her, his eyes now gray with thought as she started to breathe heavily.

"Kiss me." Hikaru demanded. Haruhi blinked out of surprise and blushed as she shook her head, tapping her ear with her palm, as if trying to believe that she had actually heard him correctly.

"…w-what?" Haruhi asked with a croaked voice.

"…kiss me…please…I'm begging you Haruhi." He whispered desperately. Haruhi blinked for a few more seconds before swallowing hard and watching as he looked up at her with pleading eyes. Haruhi considered screaming back at him, at lashing out and demanding that he tell what was going on, but the thought couldn't even pass her mind twice as he grabbed her shirt and pulled her level with him; and in under a second, their lips were attached passionately as Haruhi wrapped her arms around his neck, feeling like crying.

Hikaru was fighting past any and all urges that rid into his system as he held her to him, forcing her to never part as he kept his lips tightly in place. Haruhi shivered slightly at the feeling the kiss pressed into her as Hikaru's course hand pressed deeply into her back, forcing her chest onto his own. She was still in a half sitting half standing position, and finally, due to the weakness in her legs and the pressure of the kiss she fell, pushing him down onto the sand, not even parting.

Haruhi flinched as Hikaru nudged his head against her, parting from her lips and then coming back upon her with some regret from parting at all. Haruhi went along with it, letting her hands roam as she mentally tried to figure out what this heavy iron in her stomach was coming from throughout the kiss. It was as Hikaru nudged her lips to open with his own that she suddenly understood it wasn't a kiss to ignite her love for him- it was a kiss to say goodbye…

Haruhi pulled away for a second as she felt a tear string down her cheek.

"…where are you going?" She suddenly asked as he stared at her with sad eyes.

"….I'm sorry Haruhi…" He whispered as he rubbed her cheek with his soft touch. Haruhi slapped his hand away making him flinch as she raised her hand again to slap him across the face.

"Where are you going?! Tell me! At least tell me why you're leaving me!" Haruhi yelled as tears sprang down her cheeks. Hikaru looked away as he let out a shuddered breath and bit his lip to keep back the information. Giving her no hope was better than telling her he was engaged- it would only make things more complicated.

"It's just not working. Just look at it this way, now you can go out with Tamaki like you wanted." Hikaru whispered before he could control it. A strict slap across his face made him flinch as Haruhi suddenly shook with tears, not on the brink of sobs yet.

"DAMN IT BOY I DON'T WANT HIM I WANT YOU!" She screamed, throwing her hands down into the sand as she fell to her knees, crying softly.

"…goodbye Haruhi…" Hikaru whispered. Without another word he turned and walked off of the beach, leaving a crying girl tangled in a ball, confused, cold, and heart broken beyond her imagination.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Oh Kaoru we're so excited that you came!" A high pitched voice annoyingly rang through Kaoru's ear as he twitched and walked into the heavily decorated mansion. The walls were lined with passion flowers and everything else was perfectly matching, making him want to throw up. Kaoru tried to hold back gags as Hannah led Kaoru deeper and deeper into the strange place. He had just wanted to learn what exactly the girls had done to Haruhi that night- but it seemed he wouldn't get his answer quickly.

Deciding to get straight to the point Kaoru stopped right in front of one of the doors that led to the outside; best that he had a quick get away if she decided to pounce. Hannah suddenly stopped in her little tour as she turned to see angry golden eyes staring her down. She laughed a little nervously, her pink dress falling against her knees as she pressed her arm against her chest, revealing a long line of cleavage to his eyes.

Kaoru really did feel the need to gag now.

"…Look I just came to ask what you did to Haruhi." Kaoru whispered seriously as he kept his arms crossed, standing firm. If this girl thought that she would get the best of him she was dead wrong. The woman giggled lightly and a bit nervously as she pressed her knees together to hide her fear.

"We didn't do anything Kaoru darling." She whispered as she walked up to him, her long lashes fluttering as she laughed and skipped over to him. She was obviously not paying attention to the fact that he was glaring daggers into her little pink sadistic heart at the moment.

"Don't call me darling…" Kaoru growled out, crunching his fist against his palm as she bit her lip and brushed a piece of hair out of her face.

"That's right…I'm Hikaru's fiancé right? You're such a good little brother, looking out for him and all." The woman stated as she walked past Kaoru easily, opening the large double doors that led into the huge garden. Hannah walked out elegantly, her pink dress blending in perfectly with the happy looking flowers that embraced the entire garden. The grass was as green as a lime and any dark bushes were quickly covered up with either pink or yellow roses. Kaoru took in a deep breath and walked forward.

"Did you threaten her in any way?" Kaoru asked, ignoring the last statement as he followed at Hannah's heel. If he could just intimidate her a little maybe she would give him the information that he needed.

"Why ever would you say that?" Hannah asked as she plucked a pink rose off of the bush and put it to her lips, supposedly making her look cute. If Kaoru didn't have eyes for only one person, and or not know about her cruel and twisted heart, he would have thought that she was a beautiful woman. Hannah draped her eyes as she looked back at the younger brother.

"You know our family could crush yours if we wanted too…take back whatever threats you said to Haruhi and we won't have a problem…" Kaoru answered gravely. The girl sighed heavily as her hair flew out of her face. She tip toed over to Kaoru, trailing her fingers down his chest as she looked up at him with large pouty lips.

"Kaoru-…love….there must be another reason you're here than to just talk about **her**." Hannah whispered as she popped open the button to his shirt with what looked to just be a flick. Kaoru stood hard as stone, but inside he shuddered, this was woman just went from a sadistic whench to a seductive witch?! Gross.

"…it must be lonely…all alone…I don't know how I'd live if Haley did something like that to me…betraying me I mean…" She suddenly whispered as she kissed his collar, trails of her sticky lip-gloss making Kaoru freeze. She had hit a nerve. The girl proceeded to try and seduce him as Kaoru felt his throat light on fire. He wanted to yell curses, or insult her in some way, but for some reason- he could just think of Haruhi and Hikaru kissing, a barrier set up between them and the rest of the world.

"…she's just trying to make things harder for you two you know…not like me…I'm only trying to make it better…she wouldn't understand a twins bond…I do…I do Kaoru…" Hannah whispered into his ear as she bit his lobe. Kaoru snapped back before pushing her away. That wasn't true…Haruhi did understand, maybe not as well as he'd like, but she understood!

"…No…Hannah you just don't get it out."

'_Hehe! It's ok! I'll always be there for you!'_

Kaoru's head throbbed.

"What are you saying?! She can't be that perfect!" Hannah screamed throwing her flower onto the ground and stomping on it. Kaoru held his head again as images flashed past his head at the sight of the flower being crushed.

'_What do you mean you have a friend?! Kaoru! I thought we were supposed to be friends! Everyone else is stupid remember?! No one deserves to be in our world but us!' His twin's face was shadowed out by the darkness of the room, but Kaoru could only shake as his brother crushed the flower that Haruhi had given him before they parted. _

'_But...she's…she's different Hikaru! I bet she could even tell us apart! I KNOW SHE COULD!' Kaoru screamed. _

'_None of them are different Kaoru! And tomorrow I'll show that to you…'Hikaru whispered darkly._

'…_wa-wait…what are…what are you going to do?'_

'_We're going to play the whose Hikaru game!' Hikaru screamed as he stomped out of the room. _

"…no…she's…she's not perfect nor is she a saint…but I don't have to explain myself to the likes of you" Kaoru suddenly whispered as he shook his head and walked through the garden, ignoring the girls protest as he tuned out her shallow voice. The flowers were not a calming sight to him and soon he started in a run for something more real- he was so sick of seeing something so fake!

Kaoru took in heavy breaths as he forced his way through the green scenery and into the dark bushes that had been hidden by Hannah's over blooming flowers. The thorns of the bushes scratching his skin but only left shallow marks making Kaoru at last feel relieved. Thorns, thorns were good. Kaoru felt his way past another set of bushes and was surprised to find that a somewhat natural and worn pathway had emerged. Kaoru looked around quickly, only natural sprouts of weeds and the occasional purple flower sprouted from the places plants.

Kaoru followed the path cautiously, his head peeking around the corner as he heard a drifty voice speaking.

"What is that sir?"

Kaoru stepped forward a bit, thinking that the soft voice was talking to him.

"Why yes Mr. Tunapolois I did enjoy this afternoon session, it was very calming."

Kaoru raised a brow as no voice called back.

"Ohoho…you're really too much…" He identified the voice as one of the twins. Haley sat in the middle of a small open field surrounded by thick dark bushes and dandelions along with other weeds. The girl was holding a wet painbrush in her hand, sitting on a wooden stool as she stared at a canvas in front of her. Pain was dripping from her arms and onto her perfectly laced white dress as she stared at the painting and added a few details to the shot.

"…Haley?" Kaoru asked timidly. The girl suddenly looked up, her long blonde hair falling off of her shoulders as she giggled and tilted her head to the side. This was the first time that Kaoru had really looked at her, so of course he was surprised at the definite differences between her and her sister. While Hannah was busty and curved, Haley was skinny and looked like she could break at any given moment, and though Hannah's eyes were dark and filled with passion Haley's held a light blue with a grey tint to them, and a childish presence filled every ounce of her body.

Kaoru stood in his place, trying to figure out how to approach this one. Maybe he could get some better answers out of the whimsical girl, but he would feel bad taking advantage of her at her weak point- after all- she didn't seem all there.

"Oh why hello there Mr. Carrottop!" The girl called out happily as she waved. Kaoru raised a brow looking around for who she was talking too before he realized she was speaking to him. Kaoru patted his orange hair slightly and waved awkwardly as well as she giggled and patted next to her before continuing to paint and talk to herself.

"…who you talking to?" Kaoru asked suddenly, wanting to make sure that she wasn't completely crazy before he approached her. It took Haley a few minutes to look up from her painting as she noticed that Kaoru wasn't sitting beside her. She blinked and then glanced back at Kaoru.

"Mr. Tunapolois." She answered clearly. Kaoru paused before looking around again, as if expecting someone to jump out from the bushes.

"…is he a friend of yours?" Kaoru asked timidly.

"Oh yes quite a good friend" Haley answered as she continued painting, looking up every now and then to get a reference at something as Kaoru slowly started her way, still keeping his borders up. As he neared her Haley's still head suddenly snapped up sending Kaoru back a few steps out of fear.

"Oh! Idea! Idea Mr. Carrottop!" Haley called out as she looked back at Kaoru and patted next to her quickly again. Kaoru was still stunned from her sudden movement and couldn't think about sitting next to the crazy woman.

"Come Mr. Carrottop! If you sit down with Haley and talk to Mr. Tunapolois as well he will grow faster!" She called out happily. Kaoru raised a brow before looking at the girl as she smiled at him eagerly. Kaoru swallowed quickly- for Haruhi.

He sat down next to her onto the soft pale grass as he glanced at the many white canvases next to her. The one that she was holding had been painted on with the utmost care, the entire dull scenery that surrounded her had been turned into a magnificent amount of twist and turns that created such a delightful wonderland Kaoru had to wonder if the picture was really based on the place he saw before him. What was oddest in the painting however was the centerpiece was a common and ever so carefully drawn dandelion….

"…Eh…" he looked up from the painting as Haley started talking to herself again- or so he thought. He now noticed that her eyes were focused on something as she chatted, and letting his curiosity get the best of him he glanced over her portrait at Mr. Tunapolois- the weed.

It's bright yellow petals seemed to reach out to the sky as Haley spoke to it, the rough and dry leaves seeming to dance in the light wind as Haley giggled and leaned her head against the painting. Kaoru looked over at her soft face as she drifted from reality and into her own world. Kaoru had known that feeling all to well.

"…it's a nice painting…good course of lighting…nice details on your main focus…" Kaoru whispered. Haley suddenly perked up, turning her head to look at him as her blonde hair dripped over the drying painting.

"…you like art?" She asked in the same head in the clouds voice that he had heard earlier. "…no on in my house likes my art…"

Kaoru gave her an encouraging smile on accident as he laughed nervously.

"Well your art…is a bit different." He admitted making her glance down at the odd painting as he once again stared. It was beautiful anyway that he looked at it. From a normal persons view the fine colors that drew and attracted the eye from the dandelion made up for it's odd context, and even from an artist point of view the point of the painting was so strange and twisted it was- intriguing.

"It's just because I see the world differently…that's why my art is different…I paint what I see…" Haley whispered, her eyes half closing. Kaoru glanced at her and rubbed the back of his head as he attempted to make light of the situation.

"Do you really see these many twirls when you look around because you might want to get your eyes checked or somethi-"

"I see it when I close my eyes…" She whispered softly as she let her eyes drift into a sleeping stance. Kaoru gulped a bit and looked away, glancing down at the grass as she continued to talk, making Kaoru fidget.

"…I heard from my gardener that if you talk to a plant it will make it grow up healthier and stronger than if you don't…" The girl whispered softly as she reached out and touched the tip of the weed with her index finger. Kaoru couldn't help but show his shock as he burst out-

"But don't you usually want to cut down weeds? Why would you purposely talk to one to make it grow?" Kaoru asked. Haley smiled gently, giggling under her breath as she seemed to float higher up upon the clouds.

"…I think this dandelion is beautiful…it's hated but it's strong and still shows it's happy colors to the world knowing that it will eventually be cut down…I just want this one to have some company before they take him away, everyone deserves a chance at happiness right? Even a little weed like this…besides…I think dandelions are much better listeners than roses too…their a bit too prickly I've found" Haley whispered all too seriously. Kaoru couldn't help but laugh a bit as he covered his mouth.

"You've seriously got a different way of looking at things Haley…" Kaoru chuckled out. Haley tilted her head again, letting go of the weed as she smiled happily at Kaoru.

"You're laugh is very comforting Mr. Carrot top. I'm very glad you came to talk to me." She laughed out. Kaoru laughed as well, having to hold onto his stomach as she giggled and leaned over, taking a plain canvas and placing it on Kaoru's lap.

"…eh?" Kaoru asked as she handed him a brush.

"Please laugh and paint with me Mr. Carrot top so that I can grow up nice and strong too yes?" She asked happily. Kaoru blinked and looked down at the canvas as Haley put the paints between them. She started to go back to her painting as Kaoru hesitantly placed his brush into the black paint.

"…yea…me too Haley…" he whispered. Haley looked over at him and shook her head, pursing her lips together as she imitated a fish.

"Haley's my mortal name. You can call me Trix" Haley answered happily. Kaoru could only shake his head as he laughed and started to sketch with the black paint.

"You're a weird girl Ha-…Trix…." Kaoru whispered. How could a girl this childish and spiritual torture Haruhi like he had seen her do? Deciding not to get too comfortable with the woman without his answers Kaoru swallowed back his fear and tried to bring it up as delicately as possible; not wanting to break her mood.

"…Trix…if you agree that a dandelion shouldn't be crushed just because of what it is…why did you hurt Haruhi like you did?" Kaoru whispered as he awaited her answer. Haley didn't seem to notice he had spoken before she looked up and let another small smile grace her lips as she giggled.

"What are you talking about silly? We were just playing a game with her. Hannah said so." Haley answered as she giggled again, shaking her head at Kaoru's statement before returning to paint. Kaoru felt his heart jolt, Hannah had tricked her into hurting Haruhi by telling her it was just a game?

"Haley that wasn't a gam-" He stopped as he saw tears spill down her cheeks as she giggled and turned back to him. She was shaking lightly, but it was almost as if her body was in one realization while her mind was denying it's pain. Kaoru looked down quickly, trying not to see. It was only then that Kaoru noticed that all of the red paints were mysteriously missing from their holders.

"What were you saying Mr. Carrot top?" Kaoru flinched at her tears and gave a heavy sigh as he held out his hand.

"Pass the blue?"


	8. The One Night To Mourn And Step Forward

Dear Readers: I am really really really really really REALLY sorry for everything. I have been neglecting my story and I swear there is a good reason. Well you see I had really bad writers block so I thought if I took a break from this story and went on to another one in progress it would make me more energized and I could write faster.

Then I got sick.

Anyways long story made short I was focusing on perfecting on of my newer stories and didn't have time to finish this one, and when I did it jumped to much into the second plot and had a time skip because I couldn't figure out anything decent to write, and…it was bad.

Then so much more drama happened that I couldn't write anything decent no matter how hard I tried, I swear I haven't been sitting on my ass just doing nothing, I really have been attempting!

So anyways this is the chapter that you get so that I don't have to throw away that twenty page chapter, but I can also feel better and make the timing in the story fit more correctly. So…I'm really sorry if this chapter is horrible. I'm really trying but I'm in a slump with everything going on….

Sorry again…

"Wait what do you mean you broke up with Haruhi?!" Kaoru screamed as he followed his troubled brother into their room, shock and exhaustion covering over him. Hikaru flopped down on the bed, his blank face staring at the ceiling as Kaoru ran over to his bedside, shaking the numb boy's arms.

"Hikaru! ARE YOU CRAZY?! You just left her there without any sort of explanation at all?!" Kaoru screamed again, throwing out his hand, about ready to slap his brother for being so rough with his actions.

"Did you even think how she feels at all?! I swear sometimes you're so selfish!" Kaoru yelled smacking his Brothers chest as his eyes watered. Hikaru didn't react however and merely whispered something under his breath, making Kaoru stiffen as he stood to attention, wiping at his eyes.

"What did you say?" He asked stubbornly.

"…did you know our driver's name was Otoharuh?" Hikaru asked numbly, his eyes not from this world as he placed his arms behind his head and stared into somewhere Kaoru couldn't see. Kaoru twitched before shaking his head quickly.

"No I didn't but what does that have to do with anyth-" He was cut off suddenly as Hikaru's eyes became dangerous, slipping into a slit.

"He had a daughter…and…she died. She died not talking to him…" Hikaru whispered unbelievably as he closed his eyes, an intense look of thought crossing him as he shook his head slowly, cutting off Kaoru as he tried to speak again.

"…she died….and he still drove us to the beach today. He's probably feeling like sobbing right now and he still smiled at us like that…he's given up so much for two snooty brats who don't appreciate him at all…and even though he's done all of this…we didn't even know his name…and even though he did all of this, just for his job- she died…not speaking to him…" Hikaru whispered through gritted teeth as he suddenly struck the pillow, throwing it across the room and hitting a lamp.

The expensive elephant lamp fell to the floor with a crash as Hikaru took in heavy breaths and let his hand drop. Kaoru flinched, understanding that his brother was now not just talking about an employer that they hardly ever paid any attention to. He was scared that Haruhi would suddenly vanish without saying another word to him-

Did he actually regret leaving her with such a mood?

"Hikaru! You can get her back! Just explain everything! You can date in secret! Mom won't make you marry Hannah if she knew!" Kaoru screamed at Hikaru, slapping his arm again to try and get his attention as Hikaru grabbed another lamp and threw it across the room.

"It's not fair!" Hikaru yelled, his eyes looking about ready to water. However only hate, confusion and what could be considered an idiots plan was left in him. Kaoru didn't understand his brother for the first time in the sixteen years they had lived with one another- as one another…

Kaoru sighed and climbed on the bed before getting behind his brother and wrapping his arms around him. Kaoru placed his head on his brothers back before closing his eyes and channeling as much warmth and comfort as he could into him. Hikaru shook and covered his face quickly. Kaoru expected his brother to break down and start sobbing, but he merely shook like a child in Kaoru's arms.

"…Just today Kaoru…just let me mourn for today…then I promise I'll protect you with all of my might…" Hikaru whispered pushing Kaoru's arm away from him. He slowly stood and headed out the door, leaving Kaoru there to go over what had just happened.

Kaoru suddenly shivered.

Hikaru had just walked out of his arms hadn't he…?

-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-

All was silent as Hikaru dribbled the basketball in his hands; once more sweat pouring over him as he threw his shirt off to the side, letting the cold air chill the sweat on his bare chest. Loud curses and yells could be heard as Hikaru suddenly ran for the hoop. Since when had he figured out that sports got all of his frustrations out? Maybe it was during the time that he and Kaoru were forced into that dumb movie Tamaki had made?

Guh…he needed a drink.

Hikaru suddenly froze at the thought; he could already hear Haruhi's jaw dropping that he hadn't even thought of drinking alcohol. He was sure if she found out half of the things that the host club had done she'd be mortified. One particular conversation stuck in his mind more than ever as he shot the ball once more, only to miss and let it bounce off the rim.

It had been a long ride to the beach and Haruhi had refused to sit quietly while Hikaru had his moment of reflection. She had started up with the oddest type of conversation- which Hikaru engaged in for a bit before slowly tuning out. She then attempted to lure him out by leaning against his shoulder, but even so, this did not work. So Haruhi went to her last resort.

"Hikaru…have you ever had sex?" Haruhi asked simply.

Hikaru had nearly choked on his own spit as she asked this question, he coughed and rubbed his throat before backing away from her a bit and sending her a shocked glare.

"Wh-what?!" He asked, sputtering over his own words.

"Have you ever had sex?" She repeated this question with a calm face, not paying mind to his discomfort.

"Why are you asking me that?" Hikaru asked quickly turning his face away. Haruhi raised a brow and leaned in so that she was pressed against him, her eyes glued to the side of his cheek- daring him to look her in the eyes.

"Why aren't you answering?" She asked slyly. Hikaru blushed and quickly turned his head, staring the girl down as he tried to make up for his lack of answer.

"Am I really the one at fault here?!" He spat out.

"Is it really such a hard question to answer?" She returned. Hikaru sighed and let his head fall.

"You're hopeless"

"And you're hiding something. Ever masturbated?" Haruhi asked, in the same, hell could care tone.

"WHAT?!" This time Hikaru was the brightest red he could have ever turned in his life. There was no way she really expected him to answer these questions right? Whatever the answer was he could not win, it only led to more, awkward conversation, or even more troublesome glare of doom at knowing that he was lying and or inexperienced.

"Come on Hikaru, Kyouya says it's nothing to be ashamed of" Haruhi nudged out, bringing the dark lord's nasty habit of talking to her about such things out of thin air. Hikaru rolled his eyes and let her comfortable body melt into his as the conversation cooled and he once more regained control.

"Yea well Kyouya says a lot of things" Hikaru whispered.

"Ever been to a strip joint?" Haruhi said sweetly. Hikaru hit his head against the window swiftly.

"Why the sudden the interest in my sex life huh Haruhi?" Hikaru asked, hoping that the question would either shut her up or at least make her realize how truly embarrassing her questions were becoming.

"Its because I want to be a part of your life Hikaru…" Haruhi whispered, her voice small and fragile. Hikaru blushed and hit his head against the window again.

"I'm gonna pretend I didn't hear that the way that I heard it"

"Huh?"

"Nothing…nothing at all." Hikaru muttered. Haruhi slowly put her head on Hikaru's shoulder, relaxing even in the awkward position.

"Well…what about Kyouya?" Haruhi asked, tilting her head to the side.

"What about Kyouya?" Hikaru asked weakly.

"Kyouya's sex life." Haruhi whispered.

"Promiscuous aren't we?" Hikaru revolted. At seeing her look of displeasure at his word play he merely sighed as she continued.

"What do you know about it?" Haruhi asked gently.

"Not much." Hikaru whispered, hoping to evade this subject for good.

"So you're saying that he has one?" Haruhi whispered, her bright innocent eyes, shocked and wide. Hikaru snorted and hid a chuckle.

"Don't look so surprised Haruhi. There's a reason that cocky bastards so calm. Pun not intended."

Hikaru sighed as his energy finally left him. It was all a very depressing bunch of thoughts. He lost the only real love of his life after he had gotten her- again, his brother was probably so angry with him they wouldn't talk for a good two weeks- always a bad omen, and he was going to be marrying a sadistic bitch- which just sucked overall…

He couldn't tell which was more fun.

Hikaru opened the doors to the kitchen, walking in without too much thought as he opened the fridge door. He reached in for a soda only to brush up against some of the beer that his father had bought not too long ago. Hikaru allowed his hand to wrap around it, feeling the cold condensation as he fingered at the top of the can.

Without knowing he slowly pulled it to him, longing for the feeling of salvation from the temporary fix. Today he would mourn…and tomorrow, with his head pounding with regret and alcohol, he would return to being the best big brother Kaoru ever imagined.

And so, without a second thought the boy popped open the can and chugged down the bitter tasting liquid.

Today…he would mourn in peace.

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"Haruhi you still haven't touched your food…" Ryoji looked at his daughter, concerned and paranoid as Haruhi sat across from him, poking at her food idly. Her eyes were nearly closed and her entire body seemed to not be functioning.

She had come home, graced in sand and tears, and hadn't said a word since her arrival.

"Due to my great hormonal skills something tells me you're troubled." Ryoji whispered as Haruhi let out a soft hiccup, her body shaking at the sudden breath as her red eyes peered from her food up to her father.

"…I'm fine" Haruhi answered plainly. Ryoji didn't know what to answer with as he sent a sad glance in his daughter's direction. The man slowly extended his hand, taking her own small palm in his. Haruhi sniffed suddenly, tears welling in her eyes at her father's soft touch as she hiccupped, attempting to hold back sobs.

"I don't understand dad…I don't understand him at all."

"…I only do the things I do because I love you Haruhi….I'm sure it's the same for him…" Ryoji whispered blindly, he didn't actually know what his little cute daughter was talking about- but if the words would stop her from crying he was willing to say whatever it took.

"And if that's not it I can always show him why I almost went to prison…." He whispered with a small evil gleam as Haruhi looked up with pitiful brown eyes. Sniffing she wiped at the edges of her eyelashes and nodded.

"…I'm going to bed dad…" Haruhi whispered without another word. She got up, attempting to go to her room. Her father suddenly reached out though, wrapping an arm around her stomach since he was still sitting.

"…since when…did you stop telling me things… Haruhi?" He asked quietly. Haruhi flinched and rubbed her father's hand with a large smile.

"Hehe…don't think about it too much papa! I'm just on my period!" Haruhi lied. She knew the quickest way to get off of the subject was to make sure her father didn't go near it- and pulling out her menstrual card often took care of the problem.

Just as predicted the father flinched and quickly nodded before letting her go and sneak off into her small bedroom. Ryoji sighed heavily and rubbed his head before looking down at the telephone numbers that the three rich men had given to him- just in case he changed his mind.

"…Maybe I can do something to help my little Haruhi…" Ryoji whispered as he picked up the phone and grabbed one of the numbers from the batch. He had known that this man would be very good to Haruhi, and seeing as how Haruhi rarely found interest in boys it wouldn't be that big of a deal just to meet with the father right?

"Yes hello mam…may I speak to the head of the household please?"

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Something hot woke Haruhi with a shock, she had fallen asleep in her clothes due to the length of the day, but at feeling a sensational softness on her arm Haruhi had to wonder whose bed she had really fallen asleep in. Sliding her eyes over towards where she had noticed the irregular heat Haruhi blushed a thousand shades of red before falling off of her bed.

Was this a dream?!

"…Nunn- no-no Haruhi…you stay here.." A suave and rather drawn out voice whispered. Haruhi picked her self up onto her knees, staring dumbly at the person on her bed. Orange hair fell gently over the caresses of her pillow and blanket and golden eyes dozed off with the pink flushed face. Haruhi placed her hand over her nose as she felt her face bleach with embarrassment- his hair was down.

Hikaru mumbled as he sat up, his hair falling to his shoulders as his bangs brushed against his face. Haruhi couldn't help but stare- she had never seen Hikaru without his hair gelled up, and even though he was very handsome before…

"Haruhi what are you doing in my room?" Hikaru asked sleepily, tilting his head as he rubbed his eyes. The boy scooted over to where she was and placed his hands under her armpits before picking her up like a limp doll and placing her on the bed next to him. Haruhi was still too stunned to speak as the man yawned and laid back down.

"You idiot Hikaru this is my room!" Haruhi whispered angrily through gritted teeth, scared that her father would hear her.

"…Oh…so it is!" Hikaru merely giggled and pulled her close as he dug his head into her chest making her squeal out of embarrassment before pushing him away.

"Hikaru!" She yelled blushing like mad as he moved his head down from her chest to her stomach, taking in loving breaths as he calmed himself by wrapping himself around her thin frame. Haruhi wrestled with him but he held onto her tight, his mind warped and his body longing. He just needed to be with her, he could suppress the rest of the urges, he just wanted to be with her.

"Shh…Haruhi don't freak out…it's ok…." Hikaru whispered calmly.

"If I recall correctly you're the one who left me on the beach, by myself, with no explanation at all, I believe I have the right to freak out you little rich bastard!" Haruhi whispered quickly through a harsh glare as she threw her hands and legs about wildly.

Hikaru caught her arms quickly and pinned them over her head, his eyes peering down into hers as he moved his body over her own, golden orbs staring curiously down at the red girl as she bit her lip to keep her angry glare upon his beautiful face. That kiss today…it had gotten something inside of her kicking though she didn't quite know what it was.

"Out!" Haruhi quickly yelled, her voice breaking as tears slipped down her face. Hikaru slowly looked up at her from his spot near her stomach, his empty eyes only staring at her as she held back obvious tears and threw out her hand so that it pointed to the door.

"DIDN'T YOU HEAR ME I SAID OU-MRPH!" Haruhi felt herself go down as Hikaru pressed his lips heatedly against her own making her eyes dull as she twisted her head to match his movements. Her train of thought started to go off of it's track as she tried to remember why she was angry again. Hikaru lifted his lips off of her quickly only to place them back, repeating this gesture many times before Haruhi had to grab his head to hold his lips down on hers.

Hikaru, unknown to Haruhi, was trying to get as many kisses from her soft pink lips as he could before he had to leave them forever.

"I have to go cold turkey in the morning." Hikaru whispered to her as he kissed her jaw line quickly so that he could savor her flavor and talk at the same time. She tasted like lilacs…sweet and beautiful lilacs.

"I can't explain to you why I can't be with you Haruhi, just trust me when I say it's not because I want to." Hikaru whispered seriously, though his face was still blushed and dizzy. Haruhi didn't answer but merely kept a stern and stubborn look upon her face as she attempted to cross her arms, only to brush up against Hikaru's smooth cheek.

"…I didn't know how to sum up everything I felt on the beach…I was nervous…and scared…and so damn close to crying I thought I wouldn't make it back to the car before you saw me…" Hikaru gulped out as he nestled against Haruhi's neck, placing carefully chosen and rather cautious kisses against her skin before lifting his head once more.

"…I asked…the driver to take me here…" Hikaru whispered as he shifted his legs so that he could see Haruhi's dead pan face in the dark.

"…Haruhi Fujioka…I love you with all of my heart…so please…wait for me…" Hikaru whispered tenderly, his eyes lighting up though half closed as he peered down at Haruhi. Haruhi flinched under his gaze and knocked his chin weakly with a half closed fist as he started up at him sadly, tears rimming, her eyes saying all that he needed to know.

"Idiot." Haruhi whispered as he attacked her lips with his own again, his chest pressing against her own, his hands wandering on the side of her cheeks as he let her go. Haruhi, not having much experience with this type of thing, could only double what he threw at her.

"Wait-wait-wait!" Haruhi suddenly whispered as she felt his warm fingertips playing at the small amount of exposed skin between her bottoms and the tips of her shirt. Each touch made her heart skip twenty beats, but-!

"My dad's here, and besides, I'm still mad at you. Only kissing! If I have to wait so do you!" Haruhi demanded sternly, her face blushing and determined. Hikaru stared at her dumbly, now aware of his own fingers as he laughed nervously and rubbed the back of his head.

"…ok…" He whispered as he placed both of his hands in her hair, ready to kiss her once again.

"Slower this time…" Haruhi whispered, averting his eyes as he blinked at her command. He merely laughed and placed a tender hand on her soft cheek. Haruhi closed her eyes, taking in a small breath as he planted a light cheek on her bottom lip. This seemed to give her more pleasure than he could have imagined so he experimented by using a bit more force. Her lips parted as she took in another breath.

Hikaru parted his own lips and caught her mouth again in his trap, he closed her lips with his own, then opened them again. Haruhi eyed him but pushed herself forward a bit more, mimicking him, this time opening his mouth even more so than he did hers. Inside of his mind Hikaru chuckled, so it was war she wanted? Hikaru breathed onto her lips before pressing his head forward quickly, forcing her own back down as they started in their fight. Haruhi had to move her torso to the side to even keep up with his actions. The rather slow procedure kicked up as she started to run her hands through his hair, pulling him in closer as they fought each other for who would be on top.

Haruhi exploded in the new play fight as she attempted to keep her hands safe from wandering. She allowed them to run through his silky locks and grip onto them if the kiss got intense enough. Trying to keep her dignity she attempted to keep her body stiff- though her back would arch if Hikaru happened to trace that oh so certain spot behind her ear.

Unconsciously during their clash Hikaru slipped his tongue across her unknowing boundaries and into the unexplored regions of her mouth. Haruhi's eyes shot open as she jumped and considered pushing him off before she found that- it was pleasurable? Haruhi closed her eyes, suddenly gripping his hair tightly as she lifted her head and body to continue their scrap- this time with the new twist.

_I always thought this would be super gross when my friends from Junior High told me about it, I mean, spit in another persons mouth? Ew! But…it's…exciting? I can't even believe I'm saying this but- he taste good…_

Haruhi groaned at her own inner thoughts, she was defiantly turning into a pervert. Raging teen hormones had turned her into a pervert. The thought made her want to cry.

Haruhi bit her own lip, or what she thought was her lip, as she felt her hands skim the ends of Hikaru's shirt. He was a boy, she had seen him without his shirt many other times, so if she did what he was doing before it would be tottaly different right? Haruhi closed her eyes tightly, squeezing them shut as she denied what she was doing. Hikaru almost stopped as he felt Haruhi's all too tender hands travel up his shirt cautiously.

"Hehe…being a bit more explorative then I was allowed aren't we Haruhi?" Hikaru teased as he saw her turn so neon red she seemed to glow in the dark. The girl grabbed her hands away and pushed his face away from her own as she wiped at her mouth quickly and covered her face.

"Shut up!" She yelled as she hid herself. She was a pervert!

Hikaru merely smiled and moved her hands.

"…Hey now…covering that beautiful face of yours is a crime…" Hikaru whispered. Haruhi opened an eye as he smiled and leaned up so that he was sitting straight up. Taking in a deep breath he slipped his shirt off and threw it to the floor next to the two of them, allowing Haruhi to soak it all in before dipping himself back down to her level.

"It's ok Haruhi…I owe you anyways…you wanna see something cool?" Hikaru whispered to her. Haruhi couldn't speak so she merely nodded, glad that Hikaru was handling the situation for her. Somehow the tone he brought made her feel much more natural about the situation. Hikaru turned to the side, showing her a small scar running off of his stomach.

"…You wanna know where this is from?" Hikaru whispered. Haruhi merely nodded again as he laughed and rubbed the back of his head.

"Well you see when Kaoru and I was five-" Hikaru began. He stopped however when Haruhi poked his stomach, a small childish smile on her face. Hikaru eyed her as she giggled and continued to poke him, making him squirm.

"He-hey! I thought you wanted to hear the story!" Hikaru whispered holding in giggles. Darn it! It wasn't supposed to end up like this! Hikaru suddenly went into a fit of laughs as she prodded him once more making him fall on the bed next to her, still laughing. At his laughter Haruhi laughed as well and continued to tickle his sides, finally looking relaxed and happy.

"H-Hey! Stop!" Hikaru yelled through laughter.

"Hehe…it's funny though. It's like the dough boy…" Haruhi whispered as she poked him again making him giggle and hold his stomach, sending her a stern glare. She pouted and poked him again making him cringe through a laugh as he tried taking her hands away. Haruhi giggled and poked him once more as the night faded off into the sunrise.

"Haruhi! Stop! No! NO MEANS NO!!"

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_We fell asleep laughing that night….but after that…no laughter escaped from my lips. When I awoke the next morning Hikaru was gone and my bed was empty except for his discarded remains of a shirt by my bedside. I wasn't stupid…_

_So I hid it in my closet…._

_And without words I knew-_

_This was the end…._

_So I'd need to start a new beginning…._

_And that was that…_


	9. The Rising Climax

Authors Note: Hi guys. I just want to start off by saying I'm really sorry that I haven't updated in so long. I was having really bad writers block and I couldn't figure out the timing of the story because my journal holding all that kind of information went missing. (I'm in school so a lot of things that I had nice and organized in the summer have gone missing. Though some of you seem to think that I'm much older than I am, I'm just starting a lot of AP classes in my Junior year so already things are going crazy). So after I had already finished the ninth chapter I realized that it didn't flow very well with the rest of the story and it skipped into the second plot too quickly. So now that chapter is a bit further on in the story.

This of course made me want to throw my hair out of my head because it was around twenty pages and it had already been so long since I last updated so I thought that you all would be super angry at me if I didn't update soon.

Anyways this stupid chapter is all that I could manage to get out of me without going literally insane-again I'm really really sorry, I've been so caught up in other stories I neglected this one, and I promised myself I wouldn't do that! I'm going to try and finish this one before working on the others from now on ok?

Sorry sorry sorry sorry!

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"_MOMMY HELP ME!" Kaoru screamed as he sat up in his bed, water escaping his large golden eyes as he flinched and cringed. Blood, so much blood. Kaoru cried out suddenly as he tilted his head up and let tears fall down. He eyed his closet and threw his blanket over his bed. In the back of his head he knew that it was silly to be afraid of the dark, but tears still flew as he stared at the cabinet knowing something was hiding and waiting for him to let down his guard._

"_KAORU DON'T LEAVE! NO! KAORU PLEASE!" Kaoru jumped as Hikaru screamed and twisted turning quickly to look at Kaoru's bed. Tears strung down their small cheeks as Hikaru let out a hiccups. They were both very young, and after seeing an odd scene on the t.v about a murder in the local area both of them been burdened with nightmares. Hikaru shivered as Kaoru sobbed harder than he ever had in his entire life. Hikaru sat on the bed motionless as Kaoru wiped at his eyes with his sleeve and jumped out of the bed toward the door. Hikaru followed quickly then started to lead the way as he sniffed occasionally and bolted to his mother's room._

_No words needed to be said between the two as they cried and walked around the large mansion in the dark. They both often shared nights when they were blessed with sugar coated fantasies and others when each night was stricken with the horror of unknown monsters or death. Hikaru sniffed pathetically as he stood in front of his mother's room, the door only slightly cracked as he placed his head into the doorway. _

"_..Mommy?" Hikaru asked with a cracked voice. The woman, orange hair flying, giggled as she sat with her husband, happily drinking wine and talking of their businesses success. Hikaru's voice wasn't heard as they tapped their glasses together and gulped down the red substance. His mother picked up some newspapers which had her name and pictures of the twins plastered over the front page-_

"_Hitachiin Party Girl Turned Mother" "Fashion Leader Takes Child Industry By Storm!" _

_His mother and father both laughed as she sprang joyfully into the man's arms. Kaoru turned away for they were obviously both very drunk and happy, but Hikaru's eyes were frozen on them. Couldn't he hear her plea for help? Didn't…didn't she care? _

"_Mommy!" Hikaru suddenly cried out, his high pitched voice becoming desperate as he sobbed silently, waiting for the woman to run over to the door and save him from his bad dreams. However as he sobbed through closed eyes no warm eyes wrapped around him. _

"_Haha! Having kids was the best thing I've ever done for business honey! You were right, the publicity is the best that I've gotten in my entire life, and now people see me as not only a respectable designer, but as a respectable woman as well! All because of the twins!" She giggled in a dunk tone again and kissed the man passionately making him nod dumbly. _

"_I told you, children bring good publicity…" his dad blabbered on. Hikaru flinched and threw the door open, not paying attention to Kaoru's protest. Tears strolled down his pale face as he ran into his mother's leg, crying on her black tights heavily. _

_His moms eyes suddenly widened as she looked down at the boy, disgusted and horrified at his actions. The young woman tried to nudge him off with her foot, not understanding why he was suddenly coming to her in such a pathetic state. _

"_Hikaru let go right now! Mommy is busy!" The woman whispered in an irritated tone. Hikaru's eyes widened as he gripped tighter to her constantly moving leg, sobs now escaping easier as he shook his head, not understanding. _

"_Hikaru! I said get!" She suddenly yelled._

"_M-mom…I love you…why won't you…why aren't you comforting me…why can't you-"_

_There was a long silence in the room as his mom's arm came down quickly sending Hikaru's face forcefully to the side. Kaoru stared at his brother's now red cheek as his drunk mother lashed out, making Hikaru flinch and back away. She stopped and looked down at him with a bit of regret as he slowly moved his hand over his numb cheek. She had slapped him…she had actually slapped him. The tears threatening to spill from Hikaru's eyes flowed down as he stared sadly up at his mother. _

"_You think just because you keep crying someone will come and help you?!" She asked viciously with a small hiccup, trying to deny she had struck her child. Hikaru couldn't say a word but continued to rub his cheek, not believing that his mother could be so cruel to him. His mom shivered with regret, but being the stubborn woman she was, wouldn't admit it. _

"_GO BACK TO BED!" She yelled, her own eyes watering. Hikaru stared coldly at her, his large eyes turning into slits making her gasp as he threw his hand off of his cheek and walked out of the room. Kaoru flinched and tried to run into the room. _

"_Mom!" He called out in a sad voice. A tiny hand gripped at his arm making him flinch as he turned to see his still angry brother clinging onto him. _

"…_come on Kaoru…" He whispered. "…we're all we got now…" _

_As they excited the room Hikaru stopped, glaring at the floor, his hands clenched. He let out a yell and threw a vase down on the floor making it shatter. Kaoru shook with fear his eyes wide as he caught a glance at the wild and murderous golden eyes. Hikaru leapt again, this time striking the wall as he threw punches at it._

"…_heh…heh…" Hikaru let out angry pants as he continued to hit the wall out of compressed anger and confusion. Questions flew past his mind but he knew they would never be answered. Each punch that hit the wall and bruised his small pale knuckles hid yet another truth. _

'_**Why doesn't she love me?!'**_

'_**Why was I really born?!' **_

'_**Am I really so useless?!'**_

'_**Does she hate me?' **_

'_**Should I hate her?'**_

'_**I DON'T UNDERSTAND!'**_

_Kaoru kept his tears covered from his big brother as he sniffed and rubbed at his eyes trying to hide his shaking. Hikaru slowly looked over, his dead eyes softening at his brother's pain. Hikaru gave a great sigh and reached out his hand. Kaoru took it readily and hiccupped before the two started in a run to their room. Once there Kaoru proceeded to grip at his brother for dear life on his bed before Hikaru slowly let go and got over to his own mattress. _

"_Hi-hi-Hikaru?" Kaoru asked, hiccupping as he finished his sobbing for the moment. Hikaru suddenly pushed his mattress with some struggle so that it was side by side with Kaoru's creating one large bed. Hikaru climbed up and spread out the covers as he motioned for Kaoru to get underneath them. Kaoru climbed underneath the covers and threw it over his head to hide his face as Hikaru did the same, hugging his brothers body to his own as hot tears glided onto Kaoru's head. _

"_Don't leave me Kaoru…never leave me…" Hikaru softly whispered, breaking as he suddenly broke down, clutching his brother. Kaoru slowly nodded and rubbed his brothers back as he took in a deep breath of his scent._

"…_It's ok…it'll just be us forever and ever…I promise…" _

_**I knew I could never tell Hikaru that I had made a friend…I promised him that it would be us forever….and there was no way I would ever let him know that I had broken that promise. **_

_**But somehow it slipped…I was so stupid…Hikaru was determined to show me that she was just as stupid and dimwitted as everyone else in the world. I didn't want to believe him but by refusing him he would have won. He still hated our mother for hitting him, even though she apologized over and over to him, claiming she was drunk and regretted yelling at him at all. But what had happened had happened, and Hikaru wasn't the same. **_

_**To prove that Haruhi really was worthy of our attention he wanted to play the 'Which Ones Hikaru Game' and even though I knew that I shouldn't have agreed…I did.**_

_**I didn't honestly believe that Haruhi would be able to tell who was who, especially knowing that my brother would not make it easy for her- but…I longed for it…I sincerely wanted her to know…so that day, as the snow fell like petals from a flower, I sat and waited for what seemed to be the final judgment call. **_

_Kaoru fidgeted in his seat as Hikaru sat beside him, an angry and deadlock face covering him as he reached out and fussed with some snow on the bench. The two small children with identical orange hair and golden eyes looked up as all of the kids played happily in the snow. Somewhere inside of him Kaoru longed to play with them. Hikaru however would have had a fit. Hikaru had been hurt much more that Kaoru could have ever imagined by the fact that Kaoru had made a friend without him. _

_He saw Hikaru glare as a girl with long beautiful brown hair waved happily at them both. She had already noticed the pair of orange heads and made the connection. Haruhi had a really good memory and so Kaoru knew she wouldn't forget his brother's name which he had said so many times during their pond visits. Kaoru's heart started to race, if she didn't win the game would he not be able to go see Nacho anymore or sit with her? She was only so many more feet away and Kaoru started to sweat nervously. _

"_Put on an emotionless face and when she speaks don't speak with emotion…." Hikaru suddenly whispered. Kaoru flinched and turned to his brother in a frenzy. _

"_What? Why?" Kaoru whispered unhappily. _

"…_because…it's the only way to truly tell if she knows you or not…" Hikaru said in a hushed voice as he looked down at the ground. Kaoru flinched and looked away, if he was tottaly emotionless it would make it nearly impossible for her to tell. _

"…_you said…she knows you right…it's…it's the only way I can tell if she's just…if she's just looking at our looks…or at us…" Hikaru whispered sadly as he stared at a piece of snow right underneath his foot. Kaoru looked over at Hikaru- so…he wanted Haruhi to be able to tell the difference too…._

"…_o-ok big brother…" Kaoru whispered as he saw Haruhi merely steps away. He swallowed hard and wiped all emotion from his face. He was nervous and quivering, and so, in a last effort attempt to show Kaoru that he actually did care Hikaru reached out and squeezed his gloved hand._

"_Let's build a snowman together!" Haruhi suddenly chirped out as she finally reached the two of them. Kaoru held his breath. _

"_Which one of us are you talking to?" Hikaru demanded. Kaoru resisted the urge to slap his brother right then and there. _

"_Both of you of course" Haruhi answered testily, her knees pushing together as she found herself in an odd situation. Kaoru tried not to flinch at her anxiety, she had obviously not been expecting an interrogation._

"_There's no one called 'both of you' over here…." Hikaru snapped back. Haruhi's face became half depressed half angry as she threw her hands to the side. _

"_I'm talking to Hikaru and Kaoru!" She squeaked out. Kaoru took in heavy breaths, it was coming, the test that would determine his friendship with Haruhi was coming. He prayed inside of his mind as he suddenly burst out in a numb voice in synch with his brother-_

"_Then, do you know which ones Hikaru, and which ones Kaoru?"_

_There was silence for a while as she stared at the two, her bright eyes wide and confused. She pulled her arms inside, showing signs of uncertainty and fear. Kaoru tried his hardest not to look away, he felt the strongest urge to hold her and shout- "I'm Kaoru! It's me! It's me!"_

_But before he could grab her and tell her she had already pointed to her left and at him. He froze, was she going to say his name? Was she going to fool his brother and show him up for the jerk he was?!_

"_- …this ones Hikaru…"Haruhi whispered, staring right into Kaoru's eyes. _

_The snow suddenly fell just as Kaoru's heart fell from his chest down to the deepest part of his stomach._

_Kaoru felt his shoulders fall as his eyebrows drooped and his hand loosened on his brothers. Kaoru's lip quivered as he stared at the girl who was now shaking and covering her face out of regret at the sight. She knew before they had even answered she had gotten it wrong. Her voice was shaking as she looked about ready to cry._

"_S-sorry…please don't cry…" Haruhi whispered as she glanced up at them both, tears pooling up in her eyes. Kaoru stared up into those beautiful brown orbs, the ones that had smiled at him so many times before this moment. He saw their images reflected in her own and noticed that they too had tears springing in their eyes. Kaoru slowly looked at his brother, who was staring at nothing in particular, and he noted that Hikaru looked about as betrayed as he did at the moment._

"_I'm so sorry Kaoru!" Haruhi suddenly whispered as she cried softly and ran off and out of sight. Waiting until she was gone Kaoru slowly stood up, brushing the snow off of his hand as he placed them in his pocket and started toward the limo._

"_I want to go home…" Kaoru whispered, hate burning in him. _

"…_I didn't think she would be so sad about getting it wrong…" Hikaru slowly whispered. Kaoru felt his muscles tighten as he started in a faster pace._

"…_maybe I was wrong this time…" Hikaru assessed to himself. His eyes widened as Kaoru stopped and so he stopped as well, a few steps behind him. He looked behind his shoulder at the exit the girl had taken._

"_Kaoru don't be like that…it was for the best. She is crying now but I'm sure she'll get over it…she doesn't mean anything, you still have me…" Hikaru whispered straining over his words. Kaoru turned around quickly, glaring at his brother. _

"_Don't talk about her EVER again do you understand?! …I want to go home. I don't want to think about that selfish little COMMONER ever again! She could die for all I care!" Kaoru whispered storming off. Hikaru tensed up as he quickly looked at the sky, apologizing for Kaoru's sudden outburst._

_It started to rain. Hikaru flinched and caught up with his brother, covering his head from the rain as he sent one final glance in the girl's direction, surely she would go home after it started to rain right? _

_**I felt so angry that night…but when I came to my senses I regretted with all of my heart not running after her. So the next day I asked my driver to take me to the park. Hoping that she had forgiven me I ran to the pond where I prayed she would be waiting with that same happy smile on her face. I was heartbroken at the empty sight. Haruhi was gone and Nacho, the smallest of the ducklings, had not survived the cold terrain... **_

_**I never returned to the pond again.**_

_**But I didn't feel angry, and I figured it must have been her doing. **_

_**It wasn't until later that I learned her mother had died that night…**_

_**I guess we both lost someone that day…**_

_**I was convinced I would never see her again…**_

_**How was I to know she would come stumbling through those large wooden doors and right back into our lives?**_

_**What shocked me the most however was the way that she had acted around my brother. I thought for sure that after everything that he had done she would hate him and come back to me- but it wasn't so. I attempted to top every move that Hikaru put on, but nothing worked. I told myself it was just because she didn't remember either of us, and that's why her attention was being sent towards him instead of me.**_

"_Then let's do this, if you guess wrong in the "which ones Hikaru game" we're going to visit your house as penalty."_

"_Ok which one is Hikaru?" _

_It seemed that Haruhi didn't even need to think. She slowly extended her arm and pointed to the left, right at Kaoru. Kaoru felt his heart race inside of his chest as her confident eyes met his own. Those eyes still looked t he same after all of these years._

"_This ones Kaoru, and this ones Hikaru" She whispered pointing from Kaoru to Hikaru. Inside a fireworks show exploded in Kaoru's stomach._

"_You're wrong!" They laughed out, thinking they had won. They were about to turn to walk away when they heard Haruhi speak again. _

"_I'm not wrong. You two are different even though you two look the same." She whispered confidently. Kaoru stopped in his tracks, his eyes wide and his heart beating loud enough for the whole room to hear. Hikaru looked as shocked as he was and his golden eyes begged for an explanation. _

"_If I had to say…Hikaru's actions are one level meaner than Kaoru's…" Haruhi cooed out as she looked at Kaoru with a small smile. Kaoru blushed but hid it quickly by covering his face and laughing. So she still did hold a grudge against Hikaru! _

"_S-sorry Hikaru, ahahaha!" Kaoru giggled out as he pointed annoyingly at his brother._

"_Hey I'm just being sincere and saying what I want without hiding anything and in fact, Kaoru's more ill-natured" Hikaru snapped back. Kaoru froze recalling how he had cursed the heavens and wished for Haruhi's death after a mere clash with her. That wasn't normal…was it? Maybe…maybe he was more ill-natured._

_Hikaru was an idiot most of the time yea, but he never actually wanted harm to come to other people. Kaoru suddenly clenched his fist, grinding his teeth together as he stared angrily at his brother. The only reason that Kaoru was so angry all the time was because of Hikaru!_

"_Don't just be saying whatever you want! I'm the one that has to deal with your selfishness all the time" Kaoru growled out._

_**I guess Hikaru had it all planned out but- to me…those two sentences were really our first brotherly fight...Haruhi had a tendency to do that to us- put us on edge I mean. I always knew that we forced ourselves into our lonely world, but it was comfortable for us there- even when it was fake.**_

_It was the start of a new year and unheard of to me things had been changing. Haruhi had stopped looking at me when we passed by for our classes, Hikaru had been spending a very scary amount of time with the new exchange student- Haley, and Hannah's voice had become even more quiet and outrageous since we first met. I didn't have any classes with Haruhi and neither did Hikaru so the year went by pretty slowly and fairly boring. Christmas wasn't even a joyous occasion and mom and dad weren't even there to help us spend the two week break over. The second term was full of studying for the test and since we had much harder classes than the year before it was seldom that Hikaru and I even got a word with each other. _

_What became of the Host Club you ask? Oh…well that's the saddest story of all. You see third years have an enormous amount of pressure to live up to, whether it's getting a good score on your final exam, passing with high honors to make your father proud, or showing you ARE good enough to run the family business; the world crashed down upon you on that final judgment call. So Kyouya and Tamaki had decided to cancel club activities…_

_Hikaru was busy with his fiancé and the new basketball team he'd joined to blow off hidden emotions, Haruhi had isolated herself from all of us for so long that it seemed she was a ghost among the halls, and Honey and Takashi weren't even here to help smooth things over…_

_I was all alone in a story that I couldn't read. _

_A twin without a sibling…_

_Just Kaoru…_

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The moment was peaceful. The campus had been cleaned out for the holidays and the once exuberant flowers that bloomed ever so happily shrunk back into themselves to save their lives from the harsh bite of winter. As Haruhi sat with her book, legs folded neatly together, hands lacing with each own for warmth- she couldn't help but find her own self inside of those flowers- her petals not yet ready to reach out to the world.

That was the one thing that Haruhi found hard to express. Though Hikaru had left her quite some time ago and moved on with his life she had not yet had the same courage. Yes she had joined some new clubs to get her mind off of things, joined a cooking class and even gotten a new job yet somehow every morning she had managed to not throw out his old shirt which he had left in her care.

She wanted to burn it. She wanted to forever erase his existence from her present and move into the future with only the memory of the past to nurture her still stinging wounds.

Had she really even loved him?

Was it just the sting of knowing that he had been the one leaving her that really hit against her chest? She couldn't tell…

She was sure that she hadn't truly fallen for him, after all they had only been together for a little while and falling in love with him was rather absurd. Yet she could day dream about them having kids together, being bride and groom- growing old together.

And when she was with Hikaru it really didn't seem like that much of a daydream…

He gave her security and a warm shoulder, and even if that was selfish- she had thought that he would always be able to give her those things.

But things don't always go according to plan. And as much as it pained her to say it, seeing him with another girl really did hurt her more than the fact that he wasn't with her. Wasn't he supposed to be suffering as much as she was? Wasn't he supposed to be the one dreaming of her every night- just praying by some twitch of fate that she would come back to him? Why was he so readily holding hands with that girl, that girl that he had seen kick and punch and animalize her.

Somehow though…she knew that that pained look in his eyes on that night when he had come to see her was all the agony he could ever show to others. She still remembered the lingering smell of alcohol on his lips as he pressed down upon her, his heart racing and his breath hot-

"Haruhi can I speak with you for a moment?" The nearly cold tone made Haruhi's head snap up from her reading as she uncrossed her legs and looked over to where Kyouya's voice had been heard.

Haruhi gave him a faint smile and nodded as he took a seat next to her rather casually before leaning back- a rare sight for the black haired demon. This didn't surprise Haruhi however as she yawned and leaned back against the bench as well, her eyes trailing back to the fine print of her novel.

"Was there something you wanted to see me about Kyouya?" Haruhi asked in an all too friendly tone.

The two of them had been seen conversing with one another in long discussions and often were spotted sitting together, reading books side by side or leaning against one another's backs. Unknown to Hikaru and Kaoru Haruhi's smile had returned and her thin frame had redeemed a sense of calmness in the year's time. Unbeknownst to the twins though, was one of the biggest differences about the female turned male; the specifically designed ring that sheltered her finger.

"I just came over to see if you were doing alright. You seemed rather nervous last time we talked." Kyouya stated simply as he reached over, grabbing the book from her hands and scanning through the pages. Haruhi laughed softly, making him slowly turn his head to her as he focused his dark eyes upon her own.

"Well…come the end of this year our lives are going to change…I guess I'm just a little nervous about everything- especially since nothing seems to be changing, yet everything's changing at once…." Haruhi trailed off as she placed her slowly changing face to the sunset. Kyouya stared for a moment's time.

Hardships had transformed such an innocent and child-like face into that of a fine woman- ready to take on whatever the world gives her. She had become very confident over the year and was even more independent of her father since her medical bill had finally been wiped off their financial slate.

"You don't have to do this Haruhi…I can get the company on my own- if you don't want to pretend anymore I won't hold it against you…" Kyouya whispered. Haruhi could only smile as she pushed her bangs behind her ear.

"It's alright Kyouya, this time has allowed me to really move on…it's been good for me…I just hope it's done good for you as well." Haruhi stated in a clear tone as she stretched her arms.

Though she sounded sure- Kyouya could see the wavering in her eyes- deeper than anyone else.

"Say the word and I'll cancel everything…" He whispered to her, this time, a much more personal agenda hidden like lace underneath his words. Haruhi could merely give a soft chuckle under her breath as she grabbed his hand self assured.

"It's alright Kyouya…I'm ready for anything now…I really have given up on caring" Haruhi giggled out, her sad words not the least bit moved by her smiling exterior.

"That's not healthy- you know that right Haruhi?" Kyouya asked, as he took his glasses off the bridge of his nose, wiping the clear material with a cloth as Haruhi slowly nodded.

"Yea I know…but if I'm going to be a lawyer I've got to learn not to feel anyways right?" Haruhi asked as she looked over at Kyouya, her dark brown eyes lifeless and cold. Kyouya could even force himself to nod as she stood up, setting the book down on the wooden bench and stretching once more.

"I'm really thirsty. You want something?" Haruhi asked.

"Coffee please…" He tossed her a quarter, letting it fall gently into her hands before she walked off to the vending machine, her hair following after her in the wind.

"…Stupid girl…" Kyouya noted as he shook his head and rubbed his hands together to cause friction.

Kyouya pulled his jacket to him closer as he felt a chill run down his spine. Something bad was coming, and it was coming fast. He quickly looked over at Haruhi and saw that she was indeed just standing, as safe as can be, near the vending machine, her tiny body shivering due to the cold. Kyouya allowed his eyes to wander, meeting the second opening to the outdoor space as the doors creaked open.

"But pookie, last month you said you didn't even want to THINK about a wedding, but daddy said you have to get married by the time that spring comes along and you graduate. Now I think that we should stop daydreaming and plan this out!"

A familiar blonde headed girl and orange headed boy walked out into the cold air, meeting no limits to hold them back as they traveled along the hall without notice of Kyouya or Haruhi. The simple girl bickered and complained about the little details of what Kyouya could only guess was Hikaru's wedding- and just like that- he felt a new twinge of emotion deep inside his chest.

Hate.

Absolute hate for the man who was in linked arms with the blabbering French girl. All Kyouya could think about was how much Haruhi had silently cried, how many times he had wished that he could sooth her half as well as Hikaru once did, and the overall hate of causing such a gentle human being so much pain.

It was then that everything they had all built up fell to pieces…

"Haruhi?! Is that you?" The blonde girl's high pitched voice cut the air so heavily Kyouya considered it murder.

"Oh my gosh it's been so long!" The girl giggled out as she tightened her grip on Hikaru's arm before dragging him over to where Haruhi and Kyouya sat. Haruhi looked up from her adventure with the vending machine and swallowed hard as a rather shocked and frozen Hikaru stared at her from across the way, eyes bulging, heart throbbing.

Haruhi nearly dropped the coffee she was holding but thankfully Kyouya was there to grab the drinks from her trembling hands before they spilled. Haruhi shoved her hands quickly behind her back and bit her tongue to hide the look of surprise on her face- though she knew she could never fade the longing from her eyes.

"Hi Hannah…" Haruhi muttered out with as nice of a tone as she could muster. The girl waved lightly causing Hikaru to look away as Kyouya set his hands gently against Haruhi's arms and sat her down upon the bench with him. Haruhi silently thanked him for hiding her shaking knees.

"I haven't seen you around campus- I'd a thought that you'd moved…" Hannah muttered out, finally loosing her energy as she dug her fingernails into Hikaru's arm. Once more Hikaru didn't day anything, but merely tapped his shaking fingers against his leg.

"No…I just have a lot of other classes than you- **advanced classes**." Haruhi stressed.

They stared each other down, each smiling but hate drifting quickly and daringly between each. Kyouya kept a careful eye on Haruhi as to make sure she wouldn't jump up and attack the girl, while Hannah herself pressed her torso against the silent man she had been parading around with.

"Oh- haha- more stupid jokes. Such a kidder. I don't believe I've been formally introduced, who is this demon looking man standing beside you?" Hannah asked, straining her voice as she smiled at the black haired man.

"Kyouya-…I'm Haruhi's fiancé. Nice to meet you…."

"What?!" This suddenly caused everyone in the group to freeze up as Hikaru ripped his head to the side out of anger, suddenly engaging in the conversation- anger emitting off of every one of his clenched muscles. Haruhi stared at him, as he stared at her, anger slowly dripping off at him as his shoulders sagged, depression evident.

"_Haruhi…why?"_ He seemed to say.

But for some reason- she didn't tell him…

It was actually very complicated and hard to explain as for why the two had become engaged. It certainly wasn't because of love, oh no, it was far from it. You see although she hated to admit it to anyone Kyouya knew that Haruhi was still in love with Hikaru, and though he never admitted it, Kyouya too was in love with someone he could never have.

Or more, someone his father would never let him have…

Haruhi's father had been considering getting a new job and moving out of the city, but this was a very hit or miss move no his part and he wanted to make sure that Haruhi would be well taken care of if it backfired. He knew that Kyouya was a good man and that Haruhi had a faint attraction to him, and so, in an effort to save his daughter from herself he took up Kyouya's offer of marriage.

Of course Kyouya had not known anything about this until his father too agreed to the marriage. Nothing would be official until the two children approved, but knowing that in a business dealing with sick people and finances a leader would have to have more than just smarts- he would need compassion; something that he had lost so many years ago when his first wife had died.

So that was the deal, if the two were to agree to marriage Haruhi would be given complete security for her father, and Kyouya would inherit the business that he rightfully should have owned. But this was not their reasoning for agreeing.

They had agreed because of one thing and one thing only- the need to move on with their lives.

They both agreed that if progress had been made with the one they loved they would cancel the engagement immediately and go back to their normal lives, but if not and all seemed lost, they would marry, if not for love then for each others company.

This plan had been going on very well for the last few months, but for some reason, Kyouya had lately been having heavy doubts.

"Hikaru now is not the time to pry." Hannah whispered as she witness Hikaru's outburst, not willing to admit that he fancied the girl still. Hikaru reached his hand out, silently brushing Haruhi's cold hand as she flinched and set her eyes down cast. He begged for an answer that she wouldn't give.

"Come on Haruhi…" Kyouya whispered, taking her hand noticeably.

"I-it was good seeing you" Hikaru called out dumbly as he felt himself being dragged. He knew the statement was idiotic but he wanted so badly to call out to her, to hold her in his arms and kiss every inch of that skin that he had dreamt of so many nights before. He wanted to yell how much he loved her and how every night that he had spent without her had burdened him with nightmares. He wanted to tell her he was sorry…

But those words did not budge from his lips.

"…y-yea…you too…" Haruhi whispered, fidgeting a bit as she felt her heart thump sixteen times louder. Haruhi flinched as she lowered her bright brown eyes to look at the ground, she wondered in the back of her mind if he could hear it. Her heart ran idly in her ears and she bit her lips, praying with all her might he wouldn't be able to see the pain that etched through every part of her. She longed for him to just come to his senses, to ditch his reasoning and good nature and return to the old Hikaru she knew!

The Hikaru that would not care of the consequences and grab her in such a tight embrace the world would have to accept their love.

"Is it hard Fujiko? Loosing someone you love I mean?" Hannah asked smoothly, finally getting sick of waiting for the boy. Haruhi slowly glanced up at Hannah, her already weak stature shutting down at the girl's words. At first look Haruhi would have assumed she was talking about her mother, but it was obvious the girl had other intentions.

"…I wouldn't know…I've never truly loved anyone I guess…" Haruhi whispered. Hikaru flinched as Haruhi stared down at the ground again letting her bangs hide her pained face.

"W-well…I guess I'll see you soon…right?" He answered attentively; regret and innocence crossing his relaxed face as he glanced back at her while Hannah pulled at his arm for him to move. Haruhi slowly looked up from her spot on the ground, all of the fear and anger draining out of her eyes as she slowly nodded.

"Yea…I'll see you…."

_**--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**_

"You aren't going to be joining the art club Haley?" Kaoru asked sweetly as the two of them began on their journey to class. The art club was in dire need of painters due to the pressure of putting on a good school festival. Haley merely shrugged as her light blue eyes stared in front of her.

"I think that the art club is too oppressed for a real painter…inspiration doesn't come in an assignment…it comes in a form- like an elephant or a toothbrush." Haley whispered in her ever so airy tone. Kaoru simply nodded, having learned her real reasons for the random sentences long ago. Most of the time they were merely words that she thought sounded correct together, while other's hid a rather intellectual meaning. Kaoru guessed that this was one of those times that meant both.

"What about you Mr. Carrot top, you aren't going to join?" Haley whispered as they walked outside and into the free air. Haley's soft blue eyes peered from person to person, as if analyzing each and every character. Kaoru rubbed the back of his head, feeling the soft and yet awkward silence between the two.

"Hey Haley what are you looking for?" He finally asked as she snapped out of her observation and looked back at him with a rather obvious gaze.

"I have a photographic memory. I am trying to memorize all of those people's faces before Roman History" Haley mumbled as she pushed her hair behind her ears, her delicate skin trickling at her ear as she looked up at the boy.

"…Why?" Kaoru asked suddenly as they continued to walk, their abnormal conversation not seeming the phase either one of the two. Haley merely shrugged as she looked at all of the people working steadily at the school fair- only stopping her footsteps as she spotted a familiar looking brown eyed face.

"Haruhi!" Kaoru suddenly called out happily. His eye's lit up as he recognized the beautiful face and long dark brown hair standing before him.

"Kaoru?" Haruhi asked, her own eyes lighting up as she giggled and got down from the ladder she had been climbing. Jumping off the last few steps she ran at the boy, jumping and allowing him to pick her up in his arms as he dug his head quickly into her shoulder and squeezed her waist tightly. After having such an odd ordeal with Hikaru, seeing his friendly face was overwhelming.

"I haven't seen you since the middle of vacation…you ok?" Kaoru asked heartily as she giggled and hugged him back, not even minding the unwritten rules about hugging another in this country. People stared but not even their disapproving glares could dampen her mood.

"I've been busy." Haruhi lied as he placed her thin frame down.

"How's H- …how's everything with you?" Haruhi asked, stuttering and pausing over her own words before smiling brightly and closing her pained eyes- and just like that- Kaoru suddenly remembered why they hadn't seen each other since summer…

"Ah everything's good…everything's good…" Kaoru whispered as he nodded awkwardly. Haley looked back from the girl to the boy before letting out a soft chuckle under her breath.

"This situation is so awkward it makes me want to marry it so that we can raise beautiful unsocial children together" Haley whispered. Kaoru suddenly froze and waited as Haruhi's eyes widened. A sudden laugh cut the tense silence as Haruhi placed her gentle hands on Haley's shoulders, a genuine laugh overtaking her.

"It was Haley right?"

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"No I won't! Please! I don't want to do this! You're crazy! YOU NEED HELP!"

It was dark.

"Please! PLEASE!" The voice was pleading, sobs shaking every word as the young woman got down on her knees, begging like a lap dog to its owner not to fight. A glare hidden by the night made the figure shiver as she fell, sobbing.

"PLEASE SISTER! Please stop!"

The room was covered in shadows from head to toe and the only light that came into it was caressed by a cold silhouette of a tall figure holding a bucket. She tapped her foot, her hate filled blue eyes burning holes in the ground as she threw the can down on the floor making a small and pitiful shriek ring through the room as another figure, now emerging, fell to the ground on her hands and back- terrified of whatever was standing up besides her. This girl suddenly cried out and covered her head with both hands before backing up as if someone was coming at her with a knife.

Haley sat, quivering from head to toe as she took in deep breaths, her bright eyes empty. The girl looked about to cry as she rocked back and forth on her spot on the floor, red paint splattered all around her. Hannah held the now empty paint can to her hip as she stared down at her emotionally disturbed sister, who was whispering something under her breath, her eyes wide and fearful.

"Blood…so…so much blood…" Haley whispered with a shaky breath as she held her knees to her chest. If anyone were to walk in they would have assumed that she was a mental patient being scolded by her mother. Through the dark a cruel smile grazed perfectly painted red lips.

"…let's play a game…ok Haley?"

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"**Dad…dad?!"**


	10. The Tears I Cry Only In Front Of You

Authors Note: Hey guys, sorry that it took so long to get this up. Don't have much to say, after I finish this chapter I'll be taking a small break to finish with my studies, take a bit of a rest from making my brain hurt, and will post a preview of a the next Hikaru and Haruhi fan-fic that I'll be doing, since this next ten chapters will be the ending of the Just Hikaru plot. By the way a lot of you will notice this is like exactly the same format as the first chapter of Just Hikaru, there's a reason for that, and it's mostly just for character growth and what not, but if it annoys you sorry.

Oh and on a totally random note I saw across the universe and it was like the best movie ever! So go see it unless you have a weird thing against breast and symbolism.

Mmm yeap. I think that's about all that I have to say!

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The rain poured down hard that day. The priest was nearly inaudible over the harsh pounding of the droplets of rain against the metal roofs that sheltered the group of men and women. They blended in perfectly with the dreary scenery, with their thick black dresses and suits. No one dared to make a sound except for the constant speech of the holy man who was now reciting prayers in Latin. Had it been any other occasion, the language would have sounded sweet and swift with the priest's large, booming voice, but today everything in the world just seemed bland.

No emotions showed themselves during the ceremony; stone cold faces of business men watched without depression or remorse, co-workers dressed in drag had long ago been driven out of the sacred burial spot, and friends hid their faces with top hats and long veils. Not that it mattered; the rain that poured down so heavily hid any tears on their faces, and for that they were grateful.

Honey and Mori had made it to the ceremony but no eyes were upon them. Honey, standing tall watched the graveyard with dead eyes. His long blonde hair, falling gently against his ears, tickled Mori's neck as Honey leaned against him, his large hands holding onto Mori's own tightly.

Kyoya stood beside the two of them. Kyouya took off his glasses in respect and placed them in his pocket so that the word could see his sad eyes as he looked down at the tomb stone. The Priest had now moved on to saying a few words about the deceased. Tamaki flinched at every word that the man said, for he found nearly everything offensive to his dead friend; this man didn't know him! How dare he try and talk of him as though they were great pals! Tamaki's usually bright violet eyes slowly traveled to Haruhi, who had not said a word since everyone arrived.

Tamaki quickly pulled his head off of her however for he couldn't stand such a sad site- and he knew why it was she stood cold and expressionless. The girl was as solid as a statue as she stared down at the cemetery's cheapest headstone. She was attired in a soft black dress that dripped from her chest to her toes and covered every inch of her arms and legs. Next to her stood a well dressed Kaoru, his eyes staring as well, for one person was missing- and it was the person who counted most…

Unseen by anyone else's eyes stood an orange headed boy near the cemetery's fence. He peered at all of the sad faces while leaning his head against his hand. He wanted so badly to go to Haruhi and comfort her in her time of need, but silent bonds held him in his place. Haruhi flinched making Hikaru flinch as well, her pain his pain.

Suddenly she fell, her eyes dead to everyone. Kaoru rushed to her side as Kyouya attempted to pick her up, but she did not budge. She glared at the grassy ground, holding onto it for dear life as Kyouya attempted to pick her up. She hunched her back, making him drop her as she breathed dangerously. Kaoru tried to look into her eyes but she merely swung her head away.

Hikaru let out a heavy sigh.

'…_let them help Haruhi…let them in…'_

"We're about to lower him now mam…" The laborer whispered to Haruhi as she slowly nodded. She was holding onto something and slowly stood, holding out an old photograph. It was out of a very cheap camera and the photo had already started to fade and tear, but Haruhi knew that he would want to be buried with it. She flinched and held it over the man's grave. Her hands shook as she clenched onto the object for dear life, trying to let go.

But letting go would mean letting go of everything…

Hikaru watched helplessly as she shook and tried to put the object down upon the coffin. He sighed and jumped over the fence, breaking the bonds that had been holding him back for so long. He pushed his way through the crowd, ignoring the stares of the others as he crept up behind Haruhi, wrapping an arm around her waist and putting his head on her shoulder.

"…Let go Haruhi…" Hikaru whispered. Haruhi turned quickly, still clenching onto the photo as she stared at the boy standing behind her with wide eyes. She shook gently as he looked at her indifferently, others seeing him as cold while she saw his true pain. Haruhi started to quiver as she wavered a bit, dropping into him as she let tears she had been holding back fall while the photo fell out of her hands and into the deep earth.

It was all the same, the rain, the Earth and mud beneath him, but this time—it wasn't he who was glaring down at the coffin.

Haruhi cried softly under her breath as they lowered the coffin down into the cold ground next to an old and worn headstone. She held the hem of her dress tightly as she closed her eyes, letting her tears hit as quickly as she pleased, refusing to make a fool out of herself like she had the last time.

'_Daddy- daddy! What are they doing to mommy? She won't be able to breath with all that dirt on her….'_

"Blessed be this soul that travels to heaven: Our prayers are with you." The Priest finished. He gave a soft "amen" and stepped away from the freshly dug up Earth, allowing the grave diggers to throw their shovels in the dirt and fill the hole. Haruhi's hands shook more violently every time she heard the shovel's metal tip hit the soil.

'_Dad…she- she has work to do! She needs to tuck us in tonight! DADDY! DADDY MAKE THEM STOP! PLEASE!'_

She wanted to stop this; there was no way any of this was real. Haruhi shook as she cried to herself, not noticing the row of friends behind her, all standing solemnly, waiting for her to turn. They would not leave her; they would all stay, even if she screamed at them to leave. Hikaru stood by her side, no one daring to stop him as he put his hand on Haruhi's head and rubbed her head gently.

He waited for a shot to wake him up, after all, this was all a dream right? To teach him another lesson perhaps? Hikaru stared up at the sky, waiting for some lightning to hit him, a knife to go through his back, or a poison to take over in his veins.

But the truth was, it already had….

And this was reality….

This was real…

"…Why him…" Haruhi whispered. Her voice wasn't more than a failed attempt at speech however. The rain hid her voice very well, and even if she had been in a silent hall, she would have not been able to talk over a whisper. Hikaru felt hot tears run down his face as he rubbed them away quickly and pulled Haruhi closer to him as she sobbed into his jacket.

Yes….this was reality…not a dream…

His hand started to shake as he rubbed Haruhi's back.

"Damn hand" Hikaru muttered as it continued to shake. He refrained from biting it as Haruhi clenched onto him for dear life. He knew better than to push her away, for if he did he would have never forgiven himself, nor would Haruhi ever trust him again. Just for today he would hold her- he- he didn't want to go back on his promise but, this had never been a part of the plan.

Hikaru suddenly hated himself as he pushed Haruhi's body away from him, his own eyes wide as hers. She shook with sobs, tears streaming down her face as she looked at him in destruction from being pushed away. Hikaru dropped his hands, not believing what he had done. Tamaki, Kyouya, Kaoru, Honey, and Mori all stared at him in the utmost belief, waiting for Haruhi's reaction while she stood still.

Hikaru turned away quickly so that he wouldn't have to see such a pale and helpless face staring back at him.

An overwhelming warmness brought Hikaru out of his dark thoughts. Looking down at his hand he noticed another's intertwined within his own. Hikaru blinked, looking back quickly to see Haruhi staring back down at the grave, holding onto his hand.

Haruhi, seeing him notice her, stepped a bit closer. The long sleeve of her midnight black dress draped over their hands, causing it to be shadowed from Hikaru's view as she looked back up at him. Hikaru bit his lip as he looked down in the saddened bright brown eyes, and though they held a deep etch of depression in them, they also held fear. They shared the same fear.

Hikaru turned his head away from her, partly because he couldn't bear to see her nearly as miserable as he was, and partly because he was ashamed, ashamed of everything that had been going on.

Hikaru stared at the ground as he cursed himself out in his mind. He was weak and pathetic, and he couldn't even keep his promise to himself and to Haruhi. He had told her that he would protect her and yet here he was, resisting pushing her away for fear of her own harm. For they were both to be wed, even though neither loved their partner: The Ultimate Separation.

If only they had stopped a few moments sooner, cut off their love while it was still a crush, then maybe he would be standing next to her, picking on Tamaki, laughing with Haruhi, eating the good times that they always managed to take for granted. Maybe if he had stopped it a minute sooner, he would the only one suffering, or better yet, replaced by Kaoru. Yes, it would have been better if Haruhi had chosen him instead of Hikaru. Kaoru did nothing wrong. His voice was much sweeter, his tone happier. His face was gentler, and his actions much kinder. He didn't deserve to be in such a mess without a possibility of a savior.

Hikaru's hands started to shake again; they seemed to be doing that a lot lately. Hikaru's mind started to wander, forgetting where he was as Haruhi suddenly squeezed Hikaru's hand tightly. Haruhi whimpered out a soft sob as her knees buckled. Hikaru fell with her as she dragged him down.

"…Haruhi…you're soaked." Hikaru whispered. He didn't want to upset her any more than she was at the moment, but, that was the only sentence he could manage out. He didn't want her to get sick, especially if Hannah was planning something. Haruhi looked up at him with shaking lips as she wiped at her still crying eyes. Hikaru rubbed her head again as she continued to rub her eyes, not bothering to hide her sadness.

A year ago she would have stood cold, silently dying.

But they say love makes you cry…

"Dad!" Haruhi stuttered out. Hikaru's heart jabbed at him.

"…Come here…" Hikaru whispered as he sat down in the mud, opening his eyes slightly as the girl went into his arms, crying silently. Hikaru put his head down and into her hair, still grasping her hand tightly. Her palms had seemed so much larger when he held them last…when had she become so small?

She sniffed now, finally calming down. Hikaru just sat, his arms wrapped tightly around her, his legs creating a border around her as she cried. He didn't look back but he knew that the rest of the gang had walked to the funeral home to leave the two alone for there was complete silence except for the snapping of twigs from Haruhi's legs.

"Hikaru…?" Haruhi whispered as she stared at his chest. He looked down at her head as she looked up at him like a small child would her protector.

"Yes, Haruhi?" Hikaru asked softly. Haruhi took in deep breaths as she rubbed her now red and dry eyes. The woman calmed herself as she started to shiver. Hikaru still held her close, warming her body even though he knew that her shivering was not from the cold.

"…Hikaru…I feel sick, and I can't move…is…that ok?" Haruhi whispered to him. Hikaru flinched at the question, the same that he had asked her. He knew full well the agony that was twisting in her stomach, and all too closely what would happen if he didn't play his cards right.

"Yea, that's ok Haruhi." Hikaru whispered softly. Haruhi looked back up at him pathetically, holding onto her shoulders. Hikaru unbuttoned his jacket, placing it around her shoulders as she moved herself so that she was sitting next to him, his arm around her shoulder. He looked so cold in the rain, his eyes half closed and neutral to all the pain going on around him.

"Hikaru…can I come home with you?" Haruhi asked softly.

"No Haruhi…I'm sorry…you can't…"

And nothing else was said….

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"So how did Haruhi's dad die again?" Hikaru asked, analyzing every piece of material Kaoru could give him. Ever since he turned Haruhi away at the end of the funeral she had gone back to her normal routine with him, for nothing had really changed.

"Car accident on Lincoln, some homophobe was drunk and driving down the same street as him…purely a freak accident, could have been any guy walking down the street…just had to be him though didn't it…" Kaoru whispered angrily as the two walked down the hallway.

"You sure that he didn't plan it or no one paid him to do it or anything like that?" Hikaru asked.

"No bro, he was drunk off his ass, he's already going through trials and stuff, why what's wrong?" Kaoru asked.

"Nothing…nothing." Hikaru said shaking his head. "I'm probably just being over paranoid."

"I'll kill you!" Haruhi screamed as tears streamed down her face like a waterfall, constantly re-trying itself until she ran dry. She screamed and threw out her hands, wrapping them around Hannah's neck as she shook her violently.

"You bitch! Why?! WHY WOULD YOU DO THIS TO ME?!" Haruhi yelled as she tightened her grip, making Hannah turn an odd color of blue. Though this scene was going on in the Ouran hallways, no one cared to stop them, but only whispered to one another viciously.

"Hey what's going on?" Kaoru whispered to a boy who was trying to get into the circle that shielded the twin's from a good view of the two girls. The boy looked up over the people, trying to point to Haruhi as he strained his neck.

"Haruhi's lost it. He's trying to choke Hikaru's fiancé. He's a tiny little bugger, but he's got a pretty good punch on him…" He whispered. Kaoru's eyes widened as Hikaru's hands shook. Hikaru flinched and ran quickly, shoving through the crowd as he saw the sight with his own eyes. Haruhi growled as she cried and attempted to pull at he girls hair viciously.

Hikaru snapped into action, grabbing Haruhi by the waist as she jumped up and clawed at the air, her feet and legs kicking wildly, Hikaru straining just to keep a good keep on her. Haruhi sobbed as she tried furiously to get to a rather shocked and scared Hannah standing in front of her.

"Eh?" She whispered, obviously not knowing the extent of Haruhi's anger. Haruhi, at her clueless reaction, screamed angrily and pushed herself off of Hikaru's arms, trying desperately to be set free. Flames lifted from her eyes, her hair standing on it's own in the air as she growled and went to grab the girls neck.

"I'LL KILL YOU! I SWEAR I'LL FUCKING KILL YOU!" Haruhi screamed her voice high and broken.

"LET ME GO HIKARU! I SWEAR I'LL CLAW HER FUCKING EYES OUT! LET ME GO!" Haruhi screamed once more. Finally she seemed to have given up on getting out Hikaru's death grip as she somewhat relaxed, her eyes baring holes into Hannah's heart as she breathed heavily, sobs escaping her. There was a silence before Haruhi screamed again and reached out for the girl, only to miss and sob again before falling limp in Hikaru's arms.

"Why? Why would you do this to me? I didn't do anything wrong…I gave up…I lost…why would you punish me?" Haruhi sobbed out as she covered her eyes quickly. Hikaru let her fall to her knees on the ground as she sobbed heavily, not even attempting to conceal her grief as she would have many weeks ago. Hikaru rubbed the top of her head soothingly, he himself not knowing what was eating at the girl. He glared at Hannah quickly.

"What'd you do?" He demanded. Hannah's eyes widened as she shook her head quickly, faking innocence very cleverly, or truthfully not knowing what had gotten into Haruhi's head.

"Haruhi!" A voice suddenly rang out. Kyouya was running, full speed toward the circle as he broke through and immediately got down to the girl's level, pushing Hikaru's hand away and rubbing her cheek soothingly. Haruhi looked up, her teary eyes closed as she sobbed to Kyouya and onto his arm, clutching onto his clothing. Inside Hikaru felt a jolt stop his heart.

"Come on, let's go. Why are you at school?" He asked her, for the first time, with a hint of fear in his voice. Haruhi pointed to Hannah, her hands quivering as she whispered something to Kyouya, her tears muffing her voice.

"She did it Kyouya. I know she did." Haruhi whispered as she shook. Kyouya's eyes softened as he sighed and shook his head before picking her up and holding her bridal style so that she could sobs into his arm without having to bed her neck.

"Haruhi you know that what happened was an accident." Kyouya whispered to her. Haruhi shook her head quickly, yelling at him as he nodded and rubbed her arm while she shook, finally accepting his words as she covered her face with her hands again.

"Sorry. Sorry…" Kyouya only nodded as Haruhi sobbed out the words.

"Ha-Haruhi!" Tamaki, breathless ran into the room, his bright violet eyes gleaming from behind his long blonde bangs. His hair had grown long over the year, floating gracefully on his shoulders while Kyouya's was cut short and stuck to his scalp. They looked like an unlikely, yet beautiful pair as they stood side by side, observing the young girl. Tamaki brushed against Kyouya's shoulder as he looked down at Haruhi's crying face. Kyouya flinched.

"I'll take her to the nurse. She needs to go home." Tamaki whispered as he picked her out of Kyouya's arms and held her like any good father would his child. Kyouya nodded, his eyes following Tamaki as he sighed and looked back toward the confused Hikaru and Hannah.

Tamaki rubbed Haruhi's back as she clung to him, burying her face into his shoulder. For once however she felt a strong connection with the man. Though he had always been her friend, and through most of the time she had known him, a strong love interest, ever since she had picked Hikaru there relationship had done a one-eighty. Now there relationship was unspeakable, unable to be put into words. They had both loved, and both fell, and now, they were struggling to either thrust forth with that love- or hide under its shallow mask…

"Hikaru either throw your whole self in or stay out of her life…you're only making things worse." Kyouya yelled as he turned, glaring at Hikaru as he walked off. Hikaru flinched and turned back to Hannah as she rubbed her neck.

"Crazy bitch tried to kill me!" Hannah yelled. Hikaru snapped.

He pressed her against the wall quickly as she let out a gasp of pain.

"What did you do?!" He yelled.

"M-me? I-I didn't do anything Hikaru!" She yelled breathlessly. Hikaru took in deep breaths angrily as he suddenly yelled and kicked down a decorative vase in the hallway. He watched it fall and shatter as he kicked the shards.

"H-Hikaru…" Hannah whispered.

"Where's Haley?" Kaoru suddenly asked as he looked at Hannah. Hannah looked taken a back as she looked from the furious Hikaru to Kaoru.

"I…dunno, the art room?" Hannah guessed. Kaoru's eyes widened as he suddenly burst into a run to the art section. Hannah leaned against the wall, taking in gasped breath. She had seen something that she wasn't used to, and was about to feel the sting of her bad karma. She closed her eyes whimpering as she slid down the wall.

"Oh no…"

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"Haley…" Kaoru whispered as he saw the girl sitting in the middle of the room, crying softly to herself, red paint over every inch of every canvas, wall and floor. In splatters across her face Kaoru rushed forward to make sure that she wasn't bleeding. Kaoru grabbed both of her shoulders looking into her eyes as he searched for an answer to a question he didn't even know.

Her eyes were clear for the first time since he had met her, watered and frightened she looked him dead in the eyes, whispering under her breath as she clutched to his white shirt.

"Haley?" Kaoru whispered again.

"I was trying to help him Kaoru!" Haley yelled frantically as she shivered and pulled herself in, rubbing her arms.

"Help who Haley? What happened?" Kaoru asked timidly.

"Haruhi's dad! Hannah, Hannah wanted to burn the place he works! Not lock the doors like she said, no Haley wouldn't do that to the people even if she was under Hannah's magic spell, but just to scare little weed. She wanted to scare little weed so that she wouldn't have to crush her, because Hannah doesn't want to crush her because then Pumpkin head will be mad and go to her side instead of Hannah's! She just wanted to scare little weed…but…but Haley didn't want to…so…so Haley told Haruhi's dad that…that Haruhi wanted him home right away, and that a short way was across Lincoln…..Haley….I swear Haley didn't know that that would happen!" Haley screamed throwing her hands over her head.

Kaoru watched her sadly as he sat down and stroked her hand.

"…Haley…you couldn't have known…"

"I have to break Hannah's magic spell on me! I don't want to do bad things anymore! I won't kill anymore!" Haley screamed throwing a bucket of red paint onto the floor as she yelled and hid her eyes while quivering.

"Haley you're pretty messed up aren't you…." Kaoru whispered sadly. Haley did not reply, but merely shrunk in her own little world as she cried and hid her face from the blood like substance.

Kaoru slowly unveiled her hands, making her stare at his face. She looked at him dumbly as he looked down for a few seconds, wiping his finger against the floor to get some wet paint on his face. He nodded and put some on his nose, making her involuntarily giggle.

"You ever seen a clown Haley?"

"Yea you Mr. Carrot top"

"Well I'm not scary now am I?"

"No….no…" She whispered shaking her head.

"Mr. Carrot top?"

"Yea Haley."

"You know I won't fall in love with you right?"

"Thank God."

They both stared at eachother awkwardly before laughing and letting out held breaths.

"Haley you have some weird mood changes." He commented laughing as Haley nodded slightly, rubbing the back of her head.

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Haruhi sat, reading her book, eyes dry as the world seemed to stop for a moment. Her body was relaxed, her clothes comfortable. She had been living in Kyouya's mansion for the past few months until she legally turned eighteen and was able to find a place of her own. The parents had tried to push the wedding forward but Kyouya had convinced them that Haruhi needed time to recover, though, one would wonder why she was so relaxed now.

Her hair had grown even longer than before, for from the time that her father had died to the upcoming day of graduation she had not bothered to cut it. Not many things had happened since the funeral except the occasional glance from Kaoru, or the ever so often glare from Hannah. However one large even that been occurring that Haruhi couldn't tell anyone but her pillow at night.

A sudden tap at her window made Haruhi's eyes lazily drift up.

"Hey what's the deal with locking the window?" A pumpkin headed boy asked annoying as he stood in the bushes, smiling at the girl as she smiled deviously at him and walked over to the place where her window was, unlocking it easily as he climbed through, repeating the same pattern that he had the nights before.

Haruhi giggled as he laughed and pressed against her, picking her up and spinning her round, she held onto him tightly as he tossed her on the bed and jumped beside her. She laughed as he pressed his finger to her lips telling her to hush.

"…we don't want to wake up you're fiancé now do we?" Hikaru asked with a genuine laugh. Haruhi laughed as well, stretching her arms above her head and yawning, almost forcing his eyes upon her.

"And what about you Mr. Faithful?" Haruhi teased.

"You know once we start making jokes about cheating on our family chosen fiancés with the one we should be marrying I think we've hit rock bottom." Hikaru whispered to her with a smirk. Haruhi giggled and ran her hands quickly through his hair as he dug his head down on her collar.

"Hey! This is my shirt."

"Well it's your fault you left it here"

"Do you know how cold it is running through sprinklers without any shirt?"

"Not really, it was pretty hot for me."

"Jeez you get more perverted every time I come over."

"Just shut up and kiss me you fool."

Hikaru laughed with her as he leaned down, pressing his lips against her own. His thoughts rarely traveled in these moments with Haruhi, but he would have to remember to thank Kaoru for his advise- for Hikaru had decided. It was all or nothing.

He would fly or fall with this girl.

Hand in hand.


	11. The Guilt and Love of A Happy Family

Authors note: Hey guys, sorry it took so long, there were a lot of bad things going on at home and I didn't want to let them affect my writing. Though I failed miserably at this, I still managed to squeeze ten pages out of myself. I also fairly warned you I'd be taking a break to work on another Haruhi and Hikaru fiction, as well as some Zutara stuff as well. If I have any Zutara fans gimmee a holler, if not, I highly advise Avatar, it's a great show guys.

Anywho.

School's getting harder and test tottaly suck, however I'm not dead I swear!

I don't have much to say about this chapter except that some people seem to forget that I had already said Kyouya was in love with another person- that's why they both agreed to get married. I was kinda surprised at how angry people were with Haruhi aha, don't worry guys, there's no love in there.

And Haley and Kaoru isn't going to happen either, unless you guys want that…which I mean I wouldn't have anything against, but it wasn't planned. The main thing is I don't want you all voting for them because Kaoru needs someone, because the truth is he probably will eventually move on from Haruhi, and, I don't want you all voting for an ooc because…she's there. I'd rather you actually like the pairing and want them to be together.

By the way, I've tried to describe Haruhi's wedding dress as best as possible, it is based off a real dress (I needed something to base it off of) I put what the dress is and who it's made by, so if any of you want to make lovely fan art and need a reference, pop that into Google images, it's the first one you see.

Well enough rambling.

Enjoy the chapter.

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"Um…don't you think it's a little poofy?" Haruhi whispered to her future sister in law as she looked in the mirror at the nearly exploding excuse of a gown that she had been forced into. Her sister in law didn't seem to notice the comment as she cooed at the 'designer' shell design at the trim of the large plum peach dress. Haruhi moaned to herself. She had looked like some type of Disney princess throw up. Since Kyouya had already graduated and the wedding was still on many preparations had been put into action. It made Haruhi sick to her stomach to think that there might be no getting out of this wedding. At first it had started off harmless, both of them had been trying to trick their parents into giving them what they needed- however with Haruhi's father gone and her with no source of income, their plan had come crashing down.

Kyouya had been placed as first to inherit the company, as was the deal from Kyouya's father- so he had been attending the company every day in the same hours of his father. However he had been given this day off to accompany Haruhi on her search for a wedding dress, and for his own plans.

"Isn't it so cute Kyouya?" The woman squealed out. Haruhi could have sworn she heard Kyouya scoff behind her.

Hanging her head in desperation she adjusted the bra line quickly.

"Um, mam would it be alright if I searched with Kyouya for a little while?" She whispered, pleading to any type of God that she would say yes. When the woman nodded she nearly jumped out of the sad excuse for a dress, leaving her in her underwear as she was handed her pants and t-shirt from the rather non-reactive Kyouya. Haruhi slipped her clothes on as he looked at her- seeming uninterested, making the woman's eyes raise suspiciously.

However before she could ask Kyouya about his neutral state with his half naked fiancé, they were off.

"You looked like a big pink sea shell." Kyouya whispered to her with a cracked smile. Haruhi blushed as small flames evolved around her head, her foot stomping with each step.

"Shut up you." She whispered with a small giggle at her own self. Kyouya smirked and took one of the bridal gowns off of the rack, holding it up before passing it to Haruhi. She obediently took the dress as they walked throughout the store, nearly getting lost in the sea of colors and styles. After a while Kyouya stopped and shrugged off his coat, catching it in his hand before pulling a magazine off of one of the waiting tables.

"Here...off the top of your head name the one you like the most." He whispered, flipping it open to a variety of bridal gowns suitable for queens. Doing as he said Haruhi did not take a moment to think and pointed to the first one that drew her eye. It wasn't the prettiest, but she liked the way that it fit the woman's body- and her facial expression was of absolute bliss, something a wedding dress should bring.

Kyouya snapped his fingers and shoved the magazine in one of the clerk's faces, pointing to the gown she had picked out before calmly and coolly explaining what he wanted.

"I want one of your clerks, in Haruhi's measurements, to try on everyone of these types of styles that you have and narrow her favorites down to four for Haruhi to try on. If she finds that this is unsatisfactory, you will get her to return to pick out four more and model them for her until she finds one that she likes. Understand?" Without saying another word the woman nodded and gulped a bit, off to find a woman in Haruhi's size.

Haruhi rolled her eyes, but couldn't help but feel special at the treatment. She slowly leaned her head on his shoulder, wrapping her arm within his as she closed her eyes. Even though the engagement had started off as a business deal, she had rather liked being so close to Kyouya. Now his relationship with Tamaki was so much clearer, and the fact that he put up with her for so long was nothing short of unbelievable.

Their peaceful moment was broken by the sound of Kyouya's cell phone ringing to the tone of _Sexy Back. _A bright blue appeared on Kyouya's cheek as Haruhi looked up at him with an amused smile. A certain blonde had been messing with Kyouya's ring tones again. Haruhi giggled under her breath as he coughed and opened up the flip phone, pulling the speaker to his ear.

"Ahem. Hello?" He asked confidently.

Haruhi looked down at the floor for a few moments as he talked, after all, he had a lot more business calls now that he had graduated. She played gently with the edges of his tuxedo which she had taken no notice too till now. It was pure black with no buttons, and though she was sure that it was impossible, almost made him look human and sexy. His tie was pure black as well, contrasting nicely with the pure bleach white of his undershirt.

"Who is it?" She asked childishly as he hung up, looking rather pale.

"Tamaki." He answered taking in a soft breath. "He wants to have lunch with me."

"Well it's understandable, you haven't seen him since graduation. He must be lonely." She answered rolling her eyes as she moved in front of him, loosening his tie as she started to fix it to match his outfit.

"Hey cut it out!" He whispered under his breath as she yanked at his tie making him choke for a few moments as she continued to go back to work.

"Just hold still would ya?" She whispered untying it as she placed it loosely over his head, giving him a much more casual apparel. He looked appalled with himself as she ran her fingers through his hair, sticking It up ever so gently in the front. Haruhi smirked at her work and patted his chest.

"…Go get him tiger." She whispered softly so that no one but him would here. She could have sworn there was a bright red blush on his cheeks before he covered his face- hiding it from her, pretending to be coughing into his hands.

"It's just a lunch." He assured her.

"Uh-huh, and you're _completely _straight." Haruhi whispered with a small nod as he smirked and looked away from the small girl.

"Are you going to be fine by yourself here?" He asked, suddenly realizing that he was ditching her for the real person he wanted to be with. Haruhi simply nodded and smiled up at him, knowing that though his calm face would never show it- he was nervous beyond all belief. You see, she was the only one who knew that the person that Kyouya loved- was actually Tamaki. But since Tamaki had a huge crush on Haruhi, it made things difficult, however she was sure that things would work out for him.

"You know, he's your best friend, don't you think it's time that you told him you're really gay?" She asked, being sure to keep her voice low.

"I don't think that I need to tell him anything, he's merely good for business." He answered, making her giggle. He smiled as well and rubbed his hand across the top of her head.

"Be a good girl…I'll be back soon." He whispered.

"So if I don't see you tonight…" She whispered making him blush again as he quickly turned to hide it, giggling to herself she placed her hands around her lips and whispered-

"Don't let him dominate! He's blonde!"

Haruhi laughed to herself as she walked uncomfortably back into the dressing room where her future sister in law was on the phone- supposedly talking to her own husband. That lovely and happy perkiness had now calmed into a subtle smile, a small glimmer in her large eyes.

Haruhi smiled to herself, it must be wonderful to be married. She glanced down at her own cell phone, a bit sadly, though not at all as outwardly as she'd imagined. The girl who'd been trying on her dresses was much faster than Haruhi, and quickly brought in five or so dresses that she though would fit Haruhi's face and body structure. After apologizing many times for bringing more than she had desired Haruhi merely tried to calm her down as she laughed to herself- now alone.

She couldn't say that she disliked being alone in the dressing room, though it was a tradition to have many people around, giving advice and compliments, she liked the quiet and little pressure much more. She took her time slipped on the dresses, taking care with each button, taking in each detail of the design before turning to look into the mirror.

The first few had been duds, beautiful, but with nothing to make her experience that rush- that spark- that her mother had always talked about when she reminisced on her own wedding hell. Of course Haruhi had never really thought that a wedding was a big deal, you buy a dress, throw some flowers, kiss the groom and live your not so happily ever after.

But…as she looked at herself, she felt some sort of longing to have that spark- to experience that rush as she saw the dress she'd wear on her wedding day. The dress she had on was a more classical approach, a simple yet elegant white gown with a red sash cutting across the middle- showing off her small waist. Still changing with her eyes halfway closed Haruhi felt her energy surge.

The next few she passed off because of the colors, a light peach and a soft green, though great in contrast, were not worth getting into.

The fourth had hope. It was a very classy, very sophisticated bleach white dress that was nearly sleeveless, save for the two smooth patches of fabric that fell across her arms as she slipped it on. It was very tight around her waist and chest, making her look very thin and curved, but almost forced. The dress was pulled tight at her hip where a large and fashionable off white flower was connected at the hip. However the dress was formed so that it's length was the same, despite the ripples, and it fell gently at her ankles. As she looked at it in the mirror she found herself liking it more and more, but as she took a step forward-

"Oof!" This near catastrophe of a fall caused Haruhi's heart to burst. Sighing she slowly started at the buttons and clasp that would loosen her from the bonds. Haruhi unbuttoned herself as she heard a creek in the door, not bothering to jump for she knew that it must have been her sister in law or an assistant. Since they did not say a word Haruhi pushed their presence away and moved on.

This was the fifth and final dress that the assistant had picked out for her- it wasn't the most fitting, nor was it the most detailed, but it took a lot of different elements and mixed them together for a soft beauty. It looked almost Victorian, an off white color with nearly transparent and off pattern ruffles covering from her hips to her ankles in messy layers. The top was a brilliantly designed corset that clung to her body beautifully. Haruhi looked about herself, taking in the small beads that circled her chest, leading down to her stomach, as if almost creating a cleavage line with beads. Haruhi laughed at the thought.

The dress when looked in pieces was almost trashy, a mere prom dress in regards to the other thousands of beautiful adornments she had around her. But as a whole, it was a modern twist on an old piece of art. A classic Cinderella gown fit for a modern woman. Haruhi looked at the tag quietly "White silk tulle ballerina dress by Julien Macdonald". Haruhi winced. It sounded expensive. Taking in a deep breath Haruhi closed her eyes and gripped her chest. This was her last moment to find the spark. She'd never get to live through this again. As Haruhi opened her eyes to look into the mirror tears flew down without her knowing why.

She'd dreamed of this day since she was a little girl- standing there with her mother as she picked out the perfect dress. Her mother would be quietly sobbing in the background as Haruhi placed her arms around her, telling her that it was all gonna be ok as she wept about her little girl growing up. Her best friend would be sitting beside her, patting her back as she too held back tears.

But when her mother died she realized she would never have that dream.

Of course, it had almost been relieved when her father turned into a transvestite. Haruhi nearly laughed at it now, the dreaming of a ten year old girl as she dreamt of this day with her father- dressed in his best clothes as he let mascara run down his face in sobs as he yelled out that his little girl was a woman. Haruhi's smile brightened as she pictured Honey and Mori standing beside her, patting her back while Honey praised her endlessly. And her husband…

Her husband would be outside the room, smiling quietly to himself as his bright orange hair fell over his face, her beauty not seen by him, but felt all the same.

Haruhi blushed as she touched her face. Her husband had never had a face before in her fantasies. It was odd, having someone standing there…his trademark smirk on his face as he imagined her in the room with people who loved her. This image was so clear that when she looked up, tears streaming down her face at lost fantasies, she could clearly see that orange haired man's grin staring back at her from the mirror.

She touched his face on the reflective metal, smiling to herself as he smiled back, extending his hand towards her.

Haruhi jumped out of her skin when she felt an actual hand on her back, and a cocky- arrogant- good for nothing boy with bright golden eyes laughing at her jump before taking her in his arms (bridal style of course) and placing her on the ground. Haruhi still couldn't believe her eyes, the man she had just been dreaming about, the man who had been kissing her senseless ever since he realized who he wanted- was here…standing in front of her…in her wedding gown.

The gown fell from her chest as her arms fell in utter shock, it still all seemed so unreal. Blinking a few times as Hikaru smirked and looked her over Haruhi yelled and threw her hands over her still covered body.

"Hey turn away you stupid pedophile!" Haruhi yelled, throwing one of the lobby pillows at his face before zipping up the wedding dress fully and holding it closely to her chest. Hikaru smirked and walked behind her, rolling his arms in-between her own as he held onto her hip, placing his head against her shoulder. He smiled and kissed her shoulder.

"Why? It's not like I've never seen you naked." He replied quirkily as Haruhi blushed deeply.

"I'm changing, it's different." She muttered.

"I forgot how beautiful your body was in the sunlight, so pale and glistening, next time I come over I'm not letting you talk me into turning the lights off." He whispered to her with a chuckle as he kissed her neck, making her have to turn her head to speak correctly as she felt the familiar fire start to rise in her. At first his moves seemed to slow and gentle, slowly heating her up for things unknown- however now she knew what came after, and she knew how good every kiss, every word felt, and anything he did seemed to make her want more.

Haruhi felt an involuntary whisper leave her throat. She never was a moaner, of a whimper type of girl, it too animal like for her, and her body seemed to know that as well. She was still innocent, and her small actions of approval could easily be seen through her body more than her voice. Haruhi tilted her head up, letting him adorn her neck with kisses as they stood in front of the mirror, neither looking into their reflection.

"You're such a beautiful bride." Hikaru whispered to her, grasping both of her hands so that she allow the gown to fall loosely on her torso.

"Hikaru…cut it out…people could see." Haruhi whispered as sternly as she could manage, though this just made Hikaru want to try more. He smiled and moved his hands so that they slide on the small of her back- slowly unzipping the gown as she shivered.

"Hikaru cut it out I swear." Haruhi whispered grabbing both of his hands. Hikaru smiled, he'd won her over, and there was no need to rush. He took a deep breath and placed his head back upon her shoulder, looking into their reflection as Haruhi slowly smiled and placed her hand tenderly upon his head.

"You know…you're going to make a great husband some day…" Haruhi whispered as Hikaru smiled and tightened his grip around her stomach, looking down upon it as he patted the small just below her stomach. Haruhi giggled as she placed her own hands over his, staring still at the beautiful reflection and glow that they emitted off of one another.

"…Are babies are gonna be so sexy." Hikaru commented. Haruhi giggled as he bent down, looking at where their hands were, removing his own before Haruhi just stood, holding the unseeded baby. Hikaru kissed her hands before rubbing them gently and continuing with his coaching.

"Ok little seeds, if I can knock Haruhi up we'll HAVE to get married, so go- go through the acid like killing machine that is the uterus, and be brave, make me some beautiful babies!" Hikaru coached, shaking his hands happily as Haruhi giggled manically, throwing her hands over her face, her large smile evident even through her fingertips.

"Hikaru you're such a basket case!" Haruhi giggled out as Hikaru started to plant raspberries upon her stomach.

And at that moment, their reflection showed what should have been all along.

A beautiful bride, an anxious groom, and a happy awaiting family…

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Authors Note: Sorry this chapters a little short, I didn't want to put much more in, I also didn't want to ruin the mood by going to the Tamaki and Kyouya date, so here is the returning chapter! Hope you all liked it! Please leave reviews on what you thought was good, or even something you thought was a little bit of a turn off. Their all seniors now so I'm trying to ease their character growth in, however if you think it's a bit too much out of turn tell me! I'll take your word for it! Love you!


	12. The One Who You Hate and Pity

Authors Note: Hi everyone, I really am sorry for how longs it's been taking me to update. I really have no excuse. My computer, all of the storyline for the plot, and my little reminders on what I was going to do with the story have all crashed so I really have a clean slate and all my foreshadowing is all for none. It's not that I don't know what I wanted to do with the story, but I have really bad memory and so all those little one liners- those little moments that you think of in the car on the way home- they're all gone. But this should not have discouraged me from starting the story again. Now before I go on, there are some things that I need to address.

One: Kyouya and Tamaki is happening, so I'm sorry for those who don't support the couple, I probably won't talk about their relationship TOO much, but I do believe that all things put aside not many people are too dreadfully angry about this for which I am glad. You didn't really think that I would make Kyouya in love with Haruhi now did you? That'd be too simple!

Two: Alright some people have been rather angry about the possibility of Kaoru and Haley. First of all, when did this happen? Really? I mean, I even put in the chapter before that a few lines to let everyone KNOW that they won't get together.

I don't know if ya'll thought I was kidding or what not, but I guess I haven't made it clear enough. This makes me a little weary because there were some things I was planning on doing with the character, however I don't want it to seem like I'm just pulling out random shots to give it that readers choice. Rest assured my friends that I would never put together an OC and Kaoru.

Three: I need to know if there are still people following this story. I have some new readers, but if anyone is still watching, please let me know. I just want to know how fast I should be putting out the chapters, if the old and faithful readers are still following me, and what not. Like I've said all the time, even if you're just browsing through and reading I don't mind. But PLEASE, just leave me a review on ONE chapter, that's all I need, letting me know a few things you like about the story. I need your feedback or else the story goes to the garbage. This isn't a threat even though it sounds like it, I just want to know what I'm doing really well or else I'll guess and accidentally ruin a good thing.

And Finally Four: Is there any animes that you all would like me to write a fan-fiction about? I've been thinking about a Harry Potter one, or even a short Avatar fan-fiction just because there are too many that are going in the pooper. I'll still write Ouran fics, I already have an idea for an alternate universe one just to shake things up. I've also been receiving word that people would like a third story on this plot line. I actually originally planned it as a triology, of course, with the next named "Just Kaoru", however I ended up combing the two plot ideas making Just Haruhi around twenty chapters. However if you still want a third plot, let me know, because I'm still open to new ideas so drop me a line! Let me know what YOU want me to write about.

So that's all. Thank you for taking the time to read my ramblings and on with the story!

--

Haruhi sat in class, her hands lightly twitching against the desk as she hit her pencil rhythmically against her desk side. The people beside her tried not to look at the large black bags underneath her eyes and the way that she would droop whenever the teacher stopped talking. Others would try their hardest not to laugh as her flimsy brown hair fell over her face, causing a darkness and ability for her eyes to close. It was obvious that the girl had not gotten any sleep in the past couple of nights- and after being forced to live with your fiancé, they all assumed they knew why. They weren't too far from the truth. Even now Haruhi thought back to the intrusion to her bedside the past couple of nights. However, they were perverted as others thought they were.

Kyouya was all about details, and he knew that his father would constantly be watching the two of them for any signs of disloyalty or foul play. So to make their interactions more convincing Kyouya had begun to 'sneak' into Haruhi's room in the middle of the night. He knew that his father had camera's on the halls, kitchen, and closets, however he would never invade Haruhi's privacy enough to place one in her room. And so that was all they needed to do to make Kyouya out to be a healthy young engaged man. Just for good measure he'd climb into her bed to let the squeak go out of the room before slipping under the covers with the fully clothed girl. It was then that they finally had a moment of privacy and he could talk to her freely. Ever since confessing that he was in love with Tamaki Kyouya's front had completely changed.

He talked about things Haruhi never thought of hearing from his mouth. Like, "It hurts" or "I can't understand it". Still, it was nice. He even gave her turns to speak, though they often included questions about her morality and intentions. Even now as she sat in class, she thought back to the latest discussions they had been holding. Because of her outstanding grades she felt compelled to talk about school, and went on and on about the fascinating context of law. Kyouya however was not so impressed with her ramblings, and would often intrude about how disloyal lawyers really were to the law. Her eyebrows knitted sadly together at the recollection of their latest conversation.

"The last thing a lawyer needs to know is the truth, does that not hold true in a lawyers profession Haruhi?" Kyouya would often whisper to her as she tried to get excited about law books. She would of course deny this, but in her heart she knew it to be true. She would sigh, giving him the sign that he had won the debate, and he would turn to look at her sad small face.

"I'm not meaning to be cruel Haruhi, but is this really the type of job you want? I can't imagine greeting you back home with crocodile tears in your eyes because you cleared a guilty man." Kyouya whispered to her. She nodded, knowing full well the results of her actions should she really become a lawyer.

"Of course things like that will happen Kyouya but…I'm ready….this is what I want to do with my life…so- I'm ready. I've read all the books, I've gotten impressive marks on all the test." Haruhi argued back. It was then that a small realization hit her.

"Hey…you were talking as if we were really going to get married." She giggled, a small blush reaching her cheeks.

"I didn't know you were taking our future so seriously Mr. Kyouya. " He scoffed over his own mistake as she giggled and hummed the wedding tune to only further his embarrassment.

"Don't try and derail me from the subject." He hissed. "I think that you idolized your mother so much that you feel there was a lot of work that was left unfinished in her profession because of her early death. I think you feel compelled to save her name. But Haruhi, you're a growing woman, it is time to stop playing house and face true facts- through all that hard work, and all of that studying, what is your passion? Because right now, I see that you have a diligence for law- but no fire for it!" Haruhi's eyes turned wide at that but she merely whispered that she'd heard it all before, and that she was sure this is what she wanted to do.

But…was it?

She sighed softly rubbing her eyes and trying to focus while the teacher lectured about the importance of written word in Law. She had been taking more and more specialty classes since it was her final year, but even though she wouldn't admit it- it was all very overwhelming. The history of law, the importance of law, lies and loopholes in the law. It made her head swim. That's why she was so happy when the bell finally rang. Everyone in their seats could see her skin glow as a smile bounded to her lips when she grabbed her backpack and bounded out the door. The home economics building was really quite far from the law segment- but that was ok. She'd run.

Restaurant Cooking, her last class of the day, was the one thing that really perked her up on a bad day. Today they would be making tempura baked sushi rolls. She never had a chance to deal with such high quality material, and since most of her baked goods were made in large numbers she was able to take home the extras. Of course Kyouya fed her, but she was still hungry due to her inability to eat a full meal at the table with his family. She smiled skipping on her way to class as she giggled and hummed a small tune to herself.

"Sushi, sushi, tempura sushi."

Little did she know that carefully tuned eyes were focusing in on the girl as she skipped. Hikaru stood with a smile as he watched her, something that he often did now a days. He leaned against the pillar, just content to watch the smooth body skip and hop every now at then. She was a good girl. Much to good for him, and this he knew. His eyes smiled even brighter as she stopped and noticed his presence. She blushed at his gaze before giggling and giving a small wave. He nearly lit with excitement as she turned to walk over to him. Her brown eyes glazed over an object next to him however and he saw that happiness to see him fade. He saw something hold her back as she slowly walked back to where she was heading before. They would see each other eventually anyways.

"Hikaru…a-are you even paying attention?" A shrill voice asked as he slowly nodded, not really knowing what she was saying as he waved to the young girl. Hannah stood on her tip toes to see what he was looking at and the sight made something in her heart sink. Of course in her heart she knew that Hikaru was not hers, and that Haruhi and he were both together. But her heart never did connect to well with her mind. Hannah jumbled over the intrusion on her trust in her fiancé as she fumbled in her mind. She thought that he and Haruhi were- wasn't she engaged- and he was- Hannah's thoughts were bamboozled and confused as she held tighter to the boy next to her. She thought that the both of them were through, so why were they being so happy together? Tears glistened in her eyes as she tried to tell herself that they were only friends and that he wasn't-.

"H-Hikaru…" she whimpered out. This made Hikaru's happy expression turn to anger as he glared down at the young woman called his fiancé. She looked up at him with a bit of a sad innocence that he hadn't seen before. It almost made her seem human- almost. It didn't even occur to him that she had figured out their relationship. She was always like this he reasoned.

"What is it Hannah?" He asked trying to keep his natural tone.

"Do you love me?" She asked softly, her nails letting go of his skin, instead replaced by the soft touch of her fingertips as she dug them into his arm, begging for an answer. Hikaru didn't know exactly what to say as he looked down at the withering rose of a girl. She was so beautiful, with such an ugly soul. If only she could improve her personality, maybe then some man would love her. But she would never do that he decided, and so no one would ever love her, and he would prove that to her right now.

Now, I'd hope that one would realize the sincerity of a situation such as this. Hannah, though cold and evil in nature, was a girl in love. And as are many things of a girl in love, jealousy is one undeniable factor that will come with her. We can only see her as an enemy, a woman with now heart- and a moral as black as stone. For all we know she could have been the most lovely girl, with golden curls in her face and a smile that would entice even the most cold of men. She could have been beaten as a child, molested, or even raped at a young age. If we were to find out that, in her past, or even in her present, she had a horrible experience that left her this way- would we pity her? Would we find it in ourselves to chance our angle of thought on this poor woman?

This question will leave unanswered, for Hikaru did not take the time nor the effort to find out a little more about the woman that clung to him. He was cruel in his childish nature toward her as well, and so, had we begun to pity Hannah, we would now see Hikaru as a bad man- merely trying to break a fragile doll. But she shall not, for her know nothing of her besides that plain and simple facts of her evil ways. Maybe some of you shall see the next scene as unneeded, or even start to feel for the obviously repressed woman- or maybe some will take great joy in her pain. Either way, when two childish people with extreme emotions are placed together, something bad is sure to ensue. As we can see in the case of Hikaru and Hannah.

"No, and I never will love you Hannah. In fact,…I hate you. And I will always hate you, as long as you are living." He whispered. The woman's eyes sunk in their sockets, her exterior beauty drooping as she let her arms sag on him. He shrugged his arms away before placing them in his pockets and walking off without having to look back at them. Hannah's eyes followed faintly, her knees shaking and hitting the pillar as he walked away from her. The tears fell easily now, everyone in the room staring and gasping as they pointed to her- this weeks gossip.

"H-hate…?" She whispered gently. The women in the room took pity on her and walked to her side, rubbing her shoulders as she stared after him, reaching out ever so gently to the walking figure. She was doing all of this for him, didn't he understand that? All she wanted was his love- anyone's love. It wasn't her fault she was like this, did he think that she had a choice? Didn't he realize how normal she became when he was at her side? Didn't he take notice of how much more she shined after sleeping in the same bed as him? If he would just give himself to her she was sure that her poisoned soul would be clean.

"H-Hikaru." She whimpered out again, throwing her hands over her face as she squealed loudly.

"WHY DO YOU STILL LOVE HER?!" She asked in sobs. "Love me, PLEASE, please love me!" She yelled after him. When he didn't turn around she got out of the girls hands and started in a run toward him.

"HIKARU! I- I…." she stopped halfway through her run as he did not look back. She whimpered again, falling back onto the floor as she stared.

"I-…I need you" she whispered.

"It hurts doesn't it?" A cool voice came from behind her. Small hands clasped the young girls shoulders, pulling her up as Hannah froze. How did she get behind her? The girl looked behind at the brunette who had snuck behind the young woman. She mumbled tossing her head behind her to stare at the girl who she was fighting with for Hikaru's love. How dare she speak to her after an incident like that?

"He will be mine. He'll come to his senses" Hannah whispered.

"No Hannah…maybe you should just come to yours…"

--

"Japan's just as dirty as I remember it…I'm so glad I'm only here for a week stay." A cold voice whispered as he turned his head to the four servants following with his luggage. He stood taller than a great oak tree, his back and shoulders looking to be pinned by invisible needles. His eyes were as cold as winter, with a bit more snow- and his dark black hair flew backwards in each step as he glided like a king into his castle. The sound of people chattering about him obviously did not reach his guarded ears for in his head there was no one but him and his line to home. The sidewalk was littered with people not worthy of the sight of his feet- and this he noticed. In fact, as he walked against the crowd of evening traffic he did not stop to move out of the way of struggling pregnant women or tripping elders. People would have challenged his egotistical way of walking against the crowd, but the secret service men standing next to him told them to do otherwise. In his head, as he walked, making others go into the street as to not walk into him, they were obligated to do this.

God forbid someone go against this natural flow of things. It was his way or the highway- he smirked at that, for he meant it quite literally.

It was at that moment, when his head was even more in the clouds than usual and his powerful aura fell down a bit that a seemingly desperate young man ran towards the tall dictator. Everyone could see what was about to happen and all eyes turned them, as if praying not to see the response. Of course they hoped that it wouldn't happen- but if it would- they couldn't take their eyes off. The boy, only about six or so, was running for his life from an unseen enemy. His clothes torn, his body dirty he cried in a high pitched wail as he closed his eyes and ran towards the tall people he thought were police. He clutched some papers within his hands as his feet pounded like small gunshots against the pavement. At the sound of him getting closer the man slowly opened an eye (which he had closed to relax) to see the young boy coming at him.

However he did not move, nor slow his pace as if to help the young man.

Instead he dared the intruder by going a bit farther, swinging his arm ever so slightly with a closed fist.

But it was the boy's fault for not seeing this hostile action, for he threw open his arms and ran faster at the man, crying all the way. They two got within a foot of each other when it happened. Everyone gasped as they saw the young child fall the floor with a dead thump. The women covered their mouths out of surprise to see the blood coming down from the boy's lips and nose. As if it wasn't bad enough that he had hit the man's body full force, the older man deliberately swung his fist into the boy's face he walked by.

There was silence in the area before people started to crowd around the young man when the cold blooded bastard walked past the crowd and continued on his journey. The servants carrying his luggage dared not look behind them for fear of seeing the true damage to the child. However one small and rather kindly looking man glanced behind him, accidentally scraping the solid wood and gold against the sidewalk. Everyone froze as he picked it up quickly. This was not quick enough though, for the stone cold figure turned on his heel with a deadly stare.

"…Who did it?" He asked, the air suddenly turning cold.

The luggage carrier nervously raised his hand, his feet shaking in his well fitting boots. The man pushed his way past the conflicting servants as he went to the back where his prey was. The carrier gulped backing up some as he held up the package of papers and clothes that he was holding as if to protect himself from the protruding demon. As his black eyes fixed upon him sweat dripped down his forehead as he shivered. The man's fist clenched again, his knuckles popping underneath his ring as the servant rushed to reason with him.

"I-I-I-I did, I'm sorry sir, I'll polish it as soon as we reach your home Mr. Ootori, there- there'll be no need to pay me for the day either…" He whispered, groveling underneath the man's feet. He whimpered closing his eyes as the monster reached to his feet. He could feel the hot, lingering breath against his skin as a hand reached up and flicked his cheek. The servants let out of a breath of relief for they had foreseen a much stronger punishment. Just as they grabbed the luggage, about to head off, they all heard a strong smack before a bag fell to the floor along with a man sized body. They turned around quickly to see a huge bruise welting on the young servants face as he sat on the sidewalk, obviously taken off guard as he clutched the luggage. They could already see the indent from the man's ring in his face before he brushed off his hands, heading back to the front of the pack. He only stopped to talk to the head of the servants as he whispered, his eyes closing to day dream-

"Fire him would you? I absolutely hate careless people." He whispered heading down the sidewalk again, letting the crowd be careful for him. It was all but two minutes until they reached the Ootori home. They would have taken their private car, but it had broken down on the way to Japan- and there was no way he was stepping foot in a taxi cab.

Without needing to know he opened the door, going ahead of the others before looking about. What a disgusting place.

--

"So you're brothers staying with us for a week?" Haruhi asked as she walked home with Kyouya. Kyouya had now been meeting her in front of the school, but she still wasn't used to driving in a limo, so she had persuaded him that they could get in some much needed talking time by walking. It wasn't far at all from his house and she never did understand why he took a car there.

"Yea. It's really a bother for father and I, especially since we're housing a woman under our house again- but there's no working around it, it would be rather rude to just give him a phone call telling him that he will not be receiving the company." He whispered as he placed his hands in his pockets. Haruhi nodded a bit, not truly understanding what he was talking about. To her the whole situation was rather bothersome and only added onto a list of things that she had to worry about. Of course she had no place to complain so she kept her usually brute mouth shut. The woman looked up at Kyouya's light hearted expression as he walked beside her, his black suit paling compared to his shining eyes. She merely smiled to herself and pressed the long bangs back behind her ear.

"So how is Tamaki? I haven't seen him around lately…I suspect he's the same?" She asked turning her head to face him. She delightfully noticed the small tinge on his cheeks, but said nothing on the matter and allowed him to speak.

"Yes, he's the same old Tamaki- he's trying to convince me to open up a chain of commoner markets with him. 'The next big thing' he says 'We could make so many commoners happy'. He doesn't even know how to start a business and he's talking about opening stores nationwide." He whispered in a small voice. Haruhi could hear his inner annoyance building, but knew at the same time something beautiful was brewing in the dark man's head.

"He really is an idiot sometimes." He remarked.

"Well I think it's a lovely idea." Haruhi whispered nudging him with her elbow as she giggled. Kyouya looked down at that and smiled as well. She knew inside he wanted more than anything to get home and crunch all the numbers that Tamaki would need to make his dream come true. She suspected even now he was thinking of people who he could get in contact with when he had a moment alone.

"Yes, but you see the only problem is Tamaki wants to go all original- he doesn't want a market, but a line brand new food. I told him there was no way he would be able to find someone who'd work for as cheap as he'd have to offer them, but those stars were shining so bright in his eyes I'm pretty sure he didn't hear me." He whispered rubbing his temple.

She giggled at that and looked up to find their home standing in front of her eyes. She entered the security code while Kyouya fumbled with his phone. The woman stepped in only to take in a gasped breath, as if someone had hit her in the ribs. The entire home as a whole was not in the least alarming or different. The vases were as shiny as they had always been, the carpet was clean and swept, the faint smell of dinner already tinted the air- yet something was so incredibly off, the air so tense, the moment so clenched, that Haruhi literally lost her breath. Kyouya of course rushed to her side when he noticed her fear, but at seeing nothing, merely took her arm and gently led her into the house. She looked to him for comfort from the invisible foe, but noticed that even his breaths had become deeper.

"Oh Kyouya…"

Haruhi squeaked out of fear as a figure emerged from the shadowed hallway. Kyouya motioned for her to be quiet as he nodded his head to his eldest brother. He smiled a smile that Haruhi had never seen, and this made her want to whimper again. That smile, that smile that said so much with so little. His eyes clenched peacefully, his lip curled ever so tightly as he tried to keep in the utter hatred building inside of his chest. His entire body puffed out in instinct as he spoke.

"Hello brother." He whispered through clenched teeth. The man raised a brow, obviously not used to seeing such obvious discomfort from him. He shrugged this off and merely nodded his head before focusing his eyes on the girl behind him. He studied her for a moment, as if, for a split second, he doubted his own eyes. He pushed his glasses up, scowling at the idea he had made a mistake, and merely smiled to her.

"Hello…so it seems this is the lovely lady father was telling me about. She is all I expected and more. I first found it improbable, but I see now it is true. " He whispered with a nod. His brother eyed him carefully, unsure of what to make of the statement. He merely took his hand onto Haruhi's thin shoulder, urging her closer to him as they started to walk.

"It's still a shock that you of all brothers will be receiving the company. She must be some woman…" He whispered as they passed. Haruhi knew that Kyouya was signing her to be silent, but with her heels clicking against the floor everyone knew she was to make a statement when the room became silent. Kyouya turned as he watched her head snap back to him- that ever so present passion in her golden brown orbs. And before he had time to grab her she had already started off her sentence.

"I had nothing to do with it. I know you would like to use me as your scapegoat to hide your faults, but the fact that Kyouya is accepting the company truly has nothing to do with the woman he is to marry. I would assume you know this, and I find it rather irritating to have to teach it to you. Please don't make a habit of it." She whispered snapping her head back as she stormed to her room.

Kyouya didn't understand why she had to snap off her mouth, nor why she was so upset, but he guessed that it had to do something with her ideals of a close bonded family. He knew that she would not be satisfied till they had made peace with one another, but he didn't see this happening anytime in the near future. He cautiously turned his head back to watch his brother who was merely smiling- his cold eyes hidden beneath his frosted glasses. For the first time in his life Kyouya shivered at his brothers expression, and hurried off after the young woman. Something was not right in this house, and now he could feel it.

Of course it never occurred to him what could really be going through his brother's head. Nor the plans that were already in progress as he walked down the hall. All he knew, was as he caught Haruhi's hand in his own, rain had started to pour down upon the small house. He looked up at the roof as the sound of small pellets hitting the tile rang throughout the metallic looking house. Haruhi too looked to him, not out of fear- but of concern. They were breathing the same breath now, their animalistic instincts telling them to run and lock the doors as soon as possible. Not because of the air, nor the tension, nor the fact that there was a new presence in the house- but because of the rain.

They looked at each other and as distinctively as possible, walked into the young girls room to watch the rain from the safety of surrounding walls. They sat in front of the large window, watching the simplicity, studying it, as if it would hold the answer as to why their hearts were beating so fast. But the rain did not talk to them. It went about it's business as usual, not understanding the full impact it was having upon the homes that it rested and slid against. How was it to know that somewhere across town two orange headed brothers sat at full alert, or that a blonde with the most beautiful violet orbs was listening in urgency because of it's presence.

All it knew was how to fall and rise again. For that is what rain does. It is nothing but water, simple and plain. But to the shelters in which it fell against it meant oh so much more. For you see- nothing good happens when it rains…


	13. The Bad Feeling and Its Reason

**A/N:** Well guys it's really been a while hasn't it? If you don't follow my profile then you might not have realized why this story suddenly halted in its updates (though it really wasn't consistent before.) For those who don't already know I have a very tight knit way of writing, and most of the time I'll write out an entire stories plot (including what happens in each chapter) before even starting on the writing process. Just Haruhi, being one of my more complex plots, was one of those I had written out. Unfortunately my computer crashed and with it I lost all of my planning and plot, which was a big deal since I had no idea how I was going to actually end the story. I still had a vague idea of what I was going to do but by the time I got the courage to try and write again my skills had fallen considerably.

I tried to fix this by starting another story, but I wasn't ever happy with my work.

I'm sure most of the reader's don't care about why, or what was going on in my life at the time, but I do want to assure you that most of it was justified. I know that I'm still not at a level where I'm happy with my own writing, and though I may have grown in some ways I've fallen in many others, I can only ask that you forgive these details and enjoy the heart and the story that I'm putting out and not just the quality.

The story was planned to end at about twenty chapters, but I'm going to be pushing the story a bit faster than I had intended because I want to see this sequel finished.

To be honest I still don't have a CLUE how the story is going to end, for now, I just hope you'll enjoy the ride along with me until we figure it out.

As always I will forever love you all for your help and support during these times.

Thank you so much and please enjoy the story.

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO

"Haruhi…is that you?" A shaky voice called out from the living room. Haruhi's ears twitched as she heard it, quickly getting to attention as she poked her head inside. Sitting with tense shoulders, a face withered with time, sat her soon to be father in law, book in hand, a worried expression crossed over his features.

"Good afternoon sir." She whispered politely, bowing down a quarter or so in respect. Time had not been kind to him over the last couple of years, that cold, almost inhuman creature she had met only a few years ago seemed so distant as she watched the old man. He smiled weakly at her before moving his hand slowly towards him.

"No need to be so formal…come…I wish to speak to you…" He whispered hoarsely. Haruhi slowly nodded, her long brown hair falling over her face as she tenderly stepped toward the man. The room was lit gingerly by candlelight, it's warm and enticing aura playing off of the walls like children on a summer day. A fireplace crackled, breaking the silence, as Haruhi sat in front of the man.

"…Yes?" She asked, already knowing that what he was about to tell her was no normal lecture. Kyouya's father rarely talked unless he was giving advice about financial situations, or planning for the future. She'd seen the man smile once, but even after living in the same house together for nearly a year he had never once talked to her as carelessly as he was now.

"Haruhi…I'm dying." He whispered slowly. Haruhi sat up straight, her long lashes blinking against her cheek with her mouth agape.

"Pardon?" She whimpered out.

"I'm ill Haruhi…very ill…I have been for months…that's why it's so important that I have a son whom I can give the company to…a son that I trust…a son, who I know will take better care of it that I have." He whispered out slowly. The man crossed his arms, intertwining his fingers as his hands shook softly.

"Sir…" Haruhi started out, he laughed before shaking his head, a genuine smile crossing his face as his shaking brown eyes looked down upon her own.

"Call me dad Haruhi…please…" He whispered to her. She gulped a bit before slowly nodding, her mouth opened in an attempt to say the word, but it didn't come out as naturally as she had hoped. Haruhi fought back tears as her lips silently whispered the word she thought she'd never be able to say again-

"Dad…." Her voice broke, but she kept her composure. "W…why are you telling me this?" She asked slowly.

"Why not Kyouya…or your other children…?" Haruhi whispered gently. He bowed his head at that, the turn of his lips slowly moving from a smile to a frown as he let out a heavy sigh, his chest raising and lowering much slower than her own.

"There is so much that I regret in my lifetime Haruhi…but…the thing that truly tugs at my heart the most is the way I treated my family…especially after my beautiful and beloved wife died….without her, I was lost, and cold…and I inflicted that upon my own children…" He bit his lip, leaving a white impression where his teeth had been as he sighed, taking off his glasses while he rubbed his temple.

"…they will never forgive me, I know that…." He continued slowly.

"That's not true…" Haruhi whispered sadly. How many years had he been living with this guilt? How scared was he, knowing that he would be going to the grave without anyone to truly mourn for him? Haruhi flinched, sitting up on her knees as she placed her hand gently on his arm.

"Your children- …we…love you very much dad…" she whispered softly. He looked up, his eyes, now riddled with bags and crow's feet, watered in the dark as he attempted to smile for the young girl. He reached out and rubbed her head slowly, her hair twisting into his fingers as he laughed weakly.

"You're a good girl Haruhi…" He whispered slowly.

"You remind me of my own wife when I was younger…she was a feisty thing, just like you…Fuyumi, she was just like her, body and soul…when she was growing up, I couldn't handle seeing her mother in her…I…I suppose I feared that she would end up the same way…I scolded her for things I shouldn't have, suppressed parts of her I should have accepted…and in the end, instead of allowing her a place by my side I pushed her off into a family life…I thought…I thought she'd be happy there…" He stopped and shook his head.

"….No….no I knew she wouldn't be happy with a life like that…but, I thought it was safer, I thought…as long as she didn't get hurt, as long as I didn't get hurt…it was all justified." His eyes glazed over, obviously relishing in some lifelong secret he'd been holding in. Haruhi could only watch him, a bit terrified, as his skinny and unhealthy body shook against the chair.

"I was so cruel to them…so cruel…" He whimpered. Haruhi jumped off where she sat, quickly wrapping her arms around the old man as she held his head into her shoulder, her eyes staring up at the ceiling to hold back her own sadness.

Did all parents feel this way about their children?

"It's ok dad….it's ok…." Haruhi replied feebly, not even confident enough in her own answer to console him.

"Mr. Ootori there you are!"

A maid shuffled into the room as she gently grabbed onto the crippled man's arms, lifting him up as she threw one of his arms around her shoulder. She smiled politely down at Haruhi as she ducked down a little bit to get a better grip on the man.

"Thank you for keeping him company Haruhi." She whispered.

"It was no trouble…" Haruhi answered gently. She watched as the two started to head out of the now cold and abandoned room. The old man looked back, his eyes wavering, and his body now falling limp against the small maid, but something was there she had never seen before, a glimmer, a spark…

Hope.

"Haruhi…" he uttered "I am so happy to be able to call you my daughter."

Haruhi smiled at him and nodded politely, watching the maid hobble away with him, leaving her to sit with her thoughts. Haruhi fell back into one of the chairs and groaned, rubbing her temple, she could hear the harsh rain pounding outside, and her heartbeat started to quicken along with it.

What was she doing…?

Hikaru was engaged…and so was she…if Mr. Ootori found out that she had been planning on leaving Kyouya the whole time, it would kill him she was just sure of it, let alone to find out that his son was gay and had been hiding it from him for years now.

One thing was for sure, something had to change.

"It seems that my father really likes you."

Haruhi nearly jumped out of her skin as a voice like thunder pounded against the walls of the room and into her ears. She slowly lifted her eyes, still as confused and full of doubt, towards the man speaking towards her. She held back a growl and shot her glare towards the floor in an attempt to be polite.

"Hello Shigure." She whispered under her breath.

He smiled and sat down next to her, neatly folding his hands across his lap as he leaned back into the cushions. She twisted uncomfortably and tried to look anywhere but at him, he had been giving her the creeps ever since he arrived and a situation like this wasn't helping.

"Father seems to be in a rather delicate state of mind wouldn't you say?" He asked smoothly, glancing down at the girl as she twitched. Haruhi laughed nervously and shuffled her hands across her lap as she shrugged.

"He's getting older, I'm sure he just has a lot to think about."

"Indeed I suppose he does." Shigure crossed a leg over his knee as he let out a small groan, showing that he was thinking something. Haruhi kept her eye level low and clenched onto the couch tightly, waiting for a moment to strike or run away.

"It's funny though-" Shigure announced just as she was about to get up "-at how he seems to console in you instead of his own son, which he supposedly trust enough to leave his entire life's work with."

Haruhi flinched and tightened her grip on the couch, her eyebrows knitting together in fury as she fought to keep herself calm.

"It's just easier to talk to me because I don't hold a grudge against him; he loves Kyouya and trust Kyouya more than you could possibly understand." Haruhi hissed. Shigure smirked and nodded.

"I suppose…though that is rather hard to prove seeing as how he only started being kind to him since you came along." He glanced sideways at the woman as she snapped her head up at him.

"What are you implying?"

"Oh nothing Haruhi, nothing…just thinking to myself is all I suppose." He whispered with a giddy smile. It didn't suit him. He was up to something and she knew it. Haruhi stood up fiercely, unable to handle the pressure of his presence any longer.

"Look Shigure I really don't like it when people beat around the bush, so if you came here to tell me something than just spit it out already!" She yelled.

"Such a temper…I like that." He laughed out. Haruhi shook her head in disgust before stomping out towards the door. She turned the handle and was about to step away when she heard his voice, cold and condescending, call out to her.

"I found out something interesting about my brother you know." Shigure was smiling to himself, obviously teasing her with more questions than answers. Haruhi slowly turned and closed the door behind her with a gentle click.

"…what sort of something?" She asked.

"Oh, it's just on the tip of my tongue…now let's see…it had something to do with that illegitimate friend of his, Tamaki was it?"

Haruhi stood frozen cold as Shigure's eye's glinted with evil. He slowly pushed himself up and walked toward her, his hand extending as he ran his fingers down her cheek softly. She flinched and turned away, her breath quickening.

"But you know that it's more than that don't you Haruhi? They're far more than just 'friends' aren't they?" He smiled happily before pinching her cheek.

Haruhi gulped and looked at the wall, blocking him out as much as possible.

"I, of course, was rather surprised when I found out that my own brother way gay…imagine how shocked I was to hear that he had a fiancé as well…" Shigure moved his hand down to her jaw and swiped her face to look into his own eyes.

"Is this some kind of ploy? Some kind of game to get the company? You planned this didn't you, Kyouya had this planned all along to steal what was rightfully mine didn't he!" Shigure was no longer smiling, his face had twisted into odd proportions as he yelled at Haruhi, she tried not to flinch as she reached her hand down to open up the door. He slammed his hand down on her arm, keeping her from safety.

"Are you two in this together? Or are you just some low class gold digger who made a deal to cheat with whoever you both damn please?" Shigure screamed. Haruhi stomped her foot down quickly as she shook her head.

"It's nothing like that!" She yelled out, her heart beating faster and faster inside of her chest.

"Then Kyouya planned this?" Shigure shook her, demanding answers as she yelped and tried to move from his arms. He threw her down onto the couch and she scrambled to get away, but he grabbed onto her. He pressed her harshly into the wall adjacent of the door and tilted her chin harshly so that her head hit against the divider.

"Well, tell me! What is Kyouya planning?"

A clap of thunder ran throughout the entire home as Haruhi flinched, tears flowing from her eyes as she screamed, the sound nearly pushing her over the edge as she threw her face in to her hands.

"HIKARU!" Haruhi screamed out, hoping, praying that the boy would be able to help her. Slowly Shigure's hands weakened on her body as he laughed a laugh that made her feel even more terrified than she had been before.

"…Hikaru?" He asked tilting his head. Haruhi's bright orbs shot wide as she suddenly shook her head, reaching her hand out pleadingly as he started to back away to the door.

"Hikaru Hikaru Hikaru, now why does that name sound so familiar?" He mused playfully.

"N-no, Hikaru- h-he, he doesn't have anything to do with this." She yelled out. Shigure smirked and raised a brow.

"Oh he doesn't? Well then…what I'm about to say next won't affect him in the least." Shigure said with a small shrug. Haruhi flinched and straightened herself so that she was a bit taller against this- demon.

"…what do you mean?" She whispered.

"I'm the rightful owner of this company Haruhi…and if you value any of your friends lives, you're going to help me get it." He whispered. Haruhi raised a brow curiously as she circled away from him while he stepped forward.

"You're not willing to kill your own brother." She hissed out. He smirked and shrugged gently.

"You underestimate the intolerance in my family Haruhi. My father may be dying but he still has his pride, how do you think he'd react if I revealed to him Kyouya's little secret? Perhaps death would be too harsh of a punishment, but my father is a cunning man, I'm sure he could think of something far worse rather easily."

Haruhi moved her arms to cover her chest as she shook, how long had Shigure been planning this?

"As far as Hikaru goes I really can't touch him, though, I wonder how his fiancé would react after finding out he's been sleeping with the local mutt?" Shigure asked calmly, tilting his head a bit. Haruhi growled under her breath and threw out her hand quickly to slap his cheek, he caught it in the air however and squeezed her skin tightly.

"A-ah!" Haruhi turned her head quickly as pain shot up her arm. Her teeth clamped down on her lip as she quivered, falling at his own physical power.

"What…do you want from me?" Haruhi asked angrily. Shigure smirked to himself before laughing.

"All I want from you Miss Haruhi, is your hand in marriage." 

Hikaru shuddered as he sat with Kaoru, a bad feeling running up and down his spine. He grabbed onto his phone quickly and browsed through the text and missed calls. Nothing. Usually Haruhi would be able to talk to him by now. He sighed and hit the call button for what seemed like the hundredth time that night. He pulled the phone up to his ear and listened carefully to the dial tone.

One ring. Two. Three. Four. Five.

"Haruhi…please pick up." Hikaru whispered, his eyes shot open in joy as he heard something click, but closed once more in disappointment as he realized he had only reached her voicemail. With a low sigh he threw his phone onto his bed and leaned back against the wall.

"Maybe she's doing homework or something" Kaoru suggested, looking through one of their own photo albums. Hikaru shrugged before looking out their large glass pane windows, the thunder was striking like mad, as if trying to warn him of the impending doom on the horizon.

"I don't know…I've got a bad feeling Kaoru" Hikaru whispered softly , more to himself than at his brother. Kaoru glanced over before placing his hand over the worried teenagers. He smiled gently before patting his leg.

"It'll be alright Hikaru, tomorrow we'll go to school and you'll feel silly for ever worrying about it."

Hikaru nodded a bit, though he wasn't convinced. Slowly he stood up and marched over to their large closet, throwing open the doors to one of the many compartments. Kaoru watched curiously as Hikaru tossed shirts here and there before grabbing a long jacket.

"I'm going over there, just to make sure." He whispered. Kaoru jumped up and ran over to his brother, blocking his way to the door as he shook his head.

"Hikaru today isn't one of the safe days, someone could see you." He warned. Hikaru nodded and rubbed his temple.

"I know Kaoru but I really have a bad feeling about this, I'll just check in to see if she's ok, I'll be really quick, there's nothing wrong about a friend checking in on a friend right?" He persuaded. Kaoru scrunched up his nose in annoyance and reached out to stop his brother.

"There is when those two are secretly dating even though they're both engaged, and ONE of those said engages is bat shit CRAZY!" Kaoru yelled. Hikaru sighed before tilting his head, placing his hand gently upon his brother's shoulder.

"…then you go. There's nothing between you two, and I don't Haley would care if you two were in contact right?" Hikaru asked tilting his head some. Kaoru blinked for a bit before stepping back.

"You mean you want to switch places?" He asked. Hikaru shook his head quickly.

"No…I doubt Hannah's so dense she hasn't at least noticed a few differences about us yet…namely how I have this aura that I want to fucking kill her every time we're in the same room together..." Hikaru growled just at the thought before calming himself down. He slipped off his jacket and handed it to Kaoru.

"No…I mean…you go…as Kaoru…just…check up on her…please?" He asked softly. Kaoru could only stare at his brother in disbelief before letting out a heavy sigh, slipping on the jacket over his arms.

"Alright but you're gonna feel really silly sending me all the way across town just for her to be completely fine." Kaoru insulted. Hikaru smiled softly before nodding.

"I'd rather feel silly than be right Kaoru…so….please, bring back good news, and make me feel like a fool."

Kaoru smirked and threw open the door to their room, slipping the hood over his thick head of hair.

"Oh please Hikaru, you do that enough yourself, you don't need any help."


End file.
